11 New Messages
Digest #4456
Messages
Wed Aug 8, 2012 5:46 am (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.interfax
Interfax
August 8, 2012
South Ossetia commemorates victims of Georgian aggression
TSKHINVALI: Events marking the fourth anniversary of the Georgian attack on South Ossetia in August 2008 are being held in Tskhinvali, an Interfax correspondent reported.
An exhibit of paintings, damaged in the war, titled "War Through Paintings' Eyes" was opened on Theater Square in the center of the city. Canvasses by prominent South Ossetian painters, damaged by Georgian shells, symbolize the tragedy of those days.
Local residents and visitors gathered for a ceremony, attended by President Leonid Tibilov, lawmakers and Cabinet members. Priest Father Iakov addressed the audience, saying that the tragic days of August 2008 must not be forgotten.
"We have gathered here today to think back to those days and to tell our children about them. We pay tribute to our defenders, to those who sacrificed their lives and who survived and carry on. But we have also gathered for a holiday that asserts that life is continuing in our homeland," he said.
The priest thanked all and invited people who had gathered on the square to join a procession to the Church of the Nativity of the Holy Virgin for a commemorative service.
------------
http://www.itar-
Itar-Tass
August 8, 2012
Events on 4th anniversary of Georgia aggression held in South Ossetia
TSKHINVAL: Events are currently held in South Ossetia on the fourth anniversary of the beginning of the Georgian aggression against the republic, the people of which honour the memory and courage of the heroes - compatriots and Russian peacekeepers - who thwarted the adventurist plans of Tbilisi in August 2008.
The memory action “Let us Remember all...” was held in the republic’s capital overnight. The guests and residents of South Ossetia, representatives of the Alania Diocese and the republic’s leadership marched in a religious procession from the capital’s Teatralnaya Square to the Square of Fatherland Defenders.
At a screen installed there documentary footage of the combat actions was shown, and mournful music was played by the Rachmaninoff Russian State TV and Radio Symphony Orchestra.
“The South Ossetian leadership promises that it will never forget the friends and relatives of the soldiers who fell on the field of battle in the land of South Ossetia. The treacherous attack began at a time when world attention was focused on the opening of the Olympic Games in Beijing. Innocent civilians, young defenders of our state, peacemakers were killed,” the republic’s President Leonid Tibilov told the crowd in the square.
Russian Ambassador to South Ossetia Elbrus Kargiyev pledged that the aggression will not recur, and that the Russian Federation is the guarantor of security of the republic’s population. “Today we mourn, remember and grieve over the untimely deaths of women, children, old people, the wonderful Tskhinval guys - patriots of their country and, certainly, the Russian peacekeepers. But there is also a reason for joy - South Ossetia has got the opportunity to live a peaceful life and develop. As Russia’s representative I guarantee that that the children of South Ossetia will never see the horrors of war. The guarantors of this are the Russian Federation and its political leadership, the leaders of our country and the structures - diplomatic and military - that at the invitation of the republic’s leadership and the will of the Ossetian people have settled in South Ossetia,” Kargiyev stressed.
After the church service in the Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary on Tskhinval’s outskirts, prayers were uttered and candles were lit in memory of those who were killed by the Georgian aggressors’ attack.
The aggressors launched the open invasion of South Ossetia after tension escalated in the Georgian-Ossetian conflict zone. Early in August, the Georgian side systematically opened artillery fire and sniper shooting at Tskhinval and Ossetian villages, posts of the republic's law enforcement structures and the North Ossetian battalion of the joint peacekeeping forces.
Fire was opened from bordering Georgian residential sites. Dozens of civilians were killed or wounded during the first week of the month. The republic's authorities began to evacuate women and children.
The efforts of the Russian and South Ossetian members of the Mixed Control Commission and the command of the joint peacekeeping forces could not prevent the war. The Georgian side stated in words that it was committed to a peaceful crisis settlement, but in fact stalled the negotiating process.
Shortly before midnight on August 7, sleeping Tskhinval and nearby Ossetian villages were attacked with missile and artillery fire and air strikes.
Along with artillery fire, the Georgian army used Grad multiple launch rocket systems and cluster bombs (mass destruction weapons) against the civilian population.
The Ossetian villages of Khetagurovo, Dmenis, Pris, Sarabuk, Satikar, Mugut, Didmukha, Galuanta and others were also intensively shelled.
Early on August 8, Georgian tanks attacked the southern outskirts of Tskhinval. The strikes also hit the barracks of the Russian peacekeepers in the upper area of the south Ossetian capital.
City defenders and peacekeepers started fighting with the attackers. Some Georgian armoured vehicles were hit and burst into flames on Tskhinval streets. The fierce street fighting continued throughout the day.
In this critical situation, Russian leaders decided to start an operation to force the Georgian aggressor to peace. Units of Russian Army 58 came into the republic. Tskhinval was unblocked in two days. The Georgian troops were forced far into their territory. They were completely demoralised.
------------
http://rt.com/
RT
August 8, 2012
Georgia may seek revenge over Ossetian War – Moscow
Four years on after the August 2008 war in the Caucasus, Georgian authorities are still considering seeking revenge and using force against South Ossetia and Abkhazia, says the Russian Foreign Ministry.
The situation on the border between Georgia and the Republic of Abkhazia is alarming, according to Deputy FM Grigory Karasin.
Georgian Special Forces penetrate into Abkhazia’s Gali District and “persistently terrorize the local population,” he stated in an interview with RIA Novosti. In this way, he went on, Tbilisi is attempting to destabilize the situation in the region.
This shows that Georgian politicians still consider revenge scenarios and the use of force to restore their territorial integrity, the Russian diplomat observed.
Ahead of October’s parliamentary vote, Tbilisi is “whipping up fears about the threat from Russia,” Karasin pointed out.
Hysteria about Russia’s planned military drills, Kavkaz (Caucasus)-2012, has been going on for about a year.
“There is an outcry about some kind of plans by Russia to carry out an aggression, to destroy the Georgian statehood,” he said, adding that it is all part of the Georgian “propagandistic delirium.”
According to the diplomat, the international community has got used to President Mikhail Saakashvili’s lack of restraint: the Georgian leader makes warlike statements all the time. Accusations against Moscow should be viewed appropriately, taking into consideration the “emotionality and provocative nature of the Georgian leadership’s intentions,” Karasin noted.
Russia hopes that common sense will eventually prevail in the former Soviet republic. However, that will take time as Georgian authorities have yet to realize that hysteria should be replaced with serious politics, the deputy foreign minister stated.
As for Kavkaz-2012, Karasin reminded that the Russian leadership and diplomats have repeatedly given explanations about the war games scheduled for September.
On Tuesday, senior military official, Aleksandr Posntikov underlined that the upcoming exercises do not pose a threat to any other countries or military and political blocs. The drills will only be held on Russian territory.
"Our exercise has nothing to do with events in other countries, including in Georgia," Colonel General Postnikov said, cited Itar-Tass. "However, in order to rule out any possibility of speculations on that issue, our military bases in Abkhazia, South Ossetia and even in Armenia will not participate in the Kavkaz-2012 exercise," he stressed.
============
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@
============
Interfax
August 8, 2012
South Ossetia commemorates victims of Georgian aggression
TSKHINVALI: Events marking the fourth anniversary of the Georgian attack on South Ossetia in August 2008 are being held in Tskhinvali, an Interfax correspondent reported.
An exhibit of paintings, damaged in the war, titled "War Through Paintings' Eyes" was opened on Theater Square in the center of the city. Canvasses by prominent South Ossetian painters, damaged by Georgian shells, symbolize the tragedy of those days.
Local residents and visitors gathered for a ceremony, attended by President Leonid Tibilov, lawmakers and Cabinet members. Priest Father Iakov addressed the audience, saying that the tragic days of August 2008 must not be forgotten.
"We have gathered here today to think back to those days and to tell our children about them. We pay tribute to our defenders, to those who sacrificed their lives and who survived and carry on. But we have also gathered for a holiday that asserts that life is continuing in our homeland," he said.
The priest thanked all and invited people who had gathered on the square to join a procession to the Church of the Nativity of the Holy Virgin for a commemorative service.
------------
http://www.itar-
Itar-Tass
August 8, 2012
Events on 4th anniversary of Georgia aggression held in South Ossetia
TSKHINVAL: Events are currently held in South Ossetia on the fourth anniversary of the beginning of the Georgian aggression against the republic, the people of which honour the memory and courage of the heroes - compatriots and Russian peacekeepers - who thwarted the adventurist plans of Tbilisi in August 2008.
The memory action “Let us Remember all...” was held in the republic’s capital overnight. The guests and residents of South Ossetia, representatives of the Alania Diocese and the republic’s leadership marched in a religious procession from the capital’s Teatralnaya Square to the Square of Fatherland Defenders.
At a screen installed there documentary footage of the combat actions was shown, and mournful music was played by the Rachmaninoff Russian State TV and Radio Symphony Orchestra.
“The South Ossetian leadership promises that it will never forget the friends and relatives of the soldiers who fell on the field of battle in the land of South Ossetia. The treacherous attack began at a time when world attention was focused on the opening of the Olympic Games in Beijing. Innocent civilians, young defenders of our state, peacemakers were killed,” the republic’s President Leonid Tibilov told the crowd in the square.
Russian Ambassador to South Ossetia Elbrus Kargiyev pledged that the aggression will not recur, and that the Russian Federation is the guarantor of security of the republic’s population. “Today we mourn, remember and grieve over the untimely deaths of women, children, old people, the wonderful Tskhinval guys - patriots of their country and, certainly, the Russian peacekeepers. But there is also a reason for joy - South Ossetia has got the opportunity to live a peaceful life and develop. As Russia’s representative I guarantee that that the children of South Ossetia will never see the horrors of war. The guarantors of this are the Russian Federation and its political leadership, the leaders of our country and the structures - diplomatic and military - that at the invitation of the republic’s leadership and the will of the Ossetian people have settled in South Ossetia,” Kargiyev stressed.
After the church service in the Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary on Tskhinval’s outskirts, prayers were uttered and candles were lit in memory of those who were killed by the Georgian aggressors’ attack.
The aggressors launched the open invasion of South Ossetia after tension escalated in the Georgian-Ossetian conflict zone. Early in August, the Georgian side systematically opened artillery fire and sniper shooting at Tskhinval and Ossetian villages, posts of the republic's law enforcement structures and the North Ossetian battalion of the joint peacekeeping forces.
Fire was opened from bordering Georgian residential sites. Dozens of civilians were killed or wounded during the first week of the month. The republic's authorities began to evacuate women and children.
The efforts of the Russian and South Ossetian members of the Mixed Control Commission and the command of the joint peacekeeping forces could not prevent the war. The Georgian side stated in words that it was committed to a peaceful crisis settlement, but in fact stalled the negotiating process.
Shortly before midnight on August 7, sleeping Tskhinval and nearby Ossetian villages were attacked with missile and artillery fire and air strikes.
Along with artillery fire, the Georgian army used Grad multiple launch rocket systems and cluster bombs (mass destruction weapons) against the civilian population.
The Ossetian villages of Khetagurovo, Dmenis, Pris, Sarabuk, Satikar, Mugut, Didmukha, Galuanta and others were also intensively shelled.
Early on August 8, Georgian tanks attacked the southern outskirts of Tskhinval. The strikes also hit the barracks of the Russian peacekeepers in the upper area of the south Ossetian capital.
City defenders and peacekeepers started fighting with the attackers. Some Georgian armoured vehicles were hit and burst into flames on Tskhinval streets. The fierce street fighting continued throughout the day.
In this critical situation, Russian leaders decided to start an operation to force the Georgian aggressor to peace. Units of Russian Army 58 came into the republic. Tskhinval was unblocked in two days. The Georgian troops were forced far into their territory. They were completely demoralised.
------------
http://rt.com/
RT
August 8, 2012
Georgia may seek revenge over Ossetian War – Moscow
Four years on after the August 2008 war in the Caucasus, Georgian authorities are still considering seeking revenge and using force against South Ossetia and Abkhazia, says the Russian Foreign Ministry.
The situation on the border between Georgia and the Republic of Abkhazia is alarming, according to Deputy FM Grigory Karasin.
Georgian Special Forces penetrate into Abkhazia’s Gali District and “persistently terrorize the local population,” he stated in an interview with RIA Novosti. In this way, he went on, Tbilisi is attempting to destabilize the situation in the region.
This shows that Georgian politicians still consider revenge scenarios and the use of force to restore their territorial integrity, the Russian diplomat observed.
Ahead of October’s parliamentary vote, Tbilisi is “whipping up fears about the threat from Russia,” Karasin pointed out.
Hysteria about Russia’s planned military drills, Kavkaz (Caucasus)-2012, has been going on for about a year.
“There is an outcry about some kind of plans by Russia to carry out an aggression, to destroy the Georgian statehood,” he said, adding that it is all part of the Georgian “propagandistic delirium.”
According to the diplomat, the international community has got used to President Mikhail Saakashvili’s lack of restraint: the Georgian leader makes warlike statements all the time. Accusations against Moscow should be viewed appropriately, taking into consideration the “emotionality and provocative nature of the Georgian leadership’s intentions,” Karasin noted.
Russia hopes that common sense will eventually prevail in the former Soviet republic. However, that will take time as Georgian authorities have yet to realize that hysteria should be replaced with serious politics, the deputy foreign minister stated.
As for Kavkaz-2012, Karasin reminded that the Russian leadership and diplomats have repeatedly given explanations about the war games scheduled for September.
On Tuesday, senior military official, Aleksandr Posntikov underlined that the upcoming exercises do not pose a threat to any other countries or military and political blocs. The drills will only be held on Russian territory.
"Our exercise has nothing to do with events in other countries, including in Georgia," Colonel General Postnikov said, cited Itar-Tass. "However, in order to rule out any possibility of speculations on that issue, our military bases in Abkhazia, South Ossetia and even in Armenia will not participate in the Kavkaz-2012 exercise," he stressed.
============
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@
============
Wed Aug 8, 2012 3:02 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://english.
Voice of Russia
August 8, 2012
Syrian crisis and NATO
John Robles
Alliance allegedly gives nod to Turkey and constrains other countries
Audio at URL above
As the Syrian crisis escalates, Turkey, Syria and Poland are all under NATO's constraint these days. Was a bilateral arrangement of Poland with the US a mistake? Should Poland develop its own missiles interception system integrated into or with NATO?
Interview with Mr. Rick Rozoff, manager of Stop NATO website and mailing list. Part I.
Can you give our listeners an update on what’s going on with NATO?
NATO’s been keeping a very low profile for several weeks. Their website, for example, has not updated for at least three weeks, perhaps a month. I’m not sure what to attribute that to. It may be a conscious decision to keep a low profile as the Syrian crisis escalates. So that should they become involved - a likely scenario, of course, is in alleged defense of Turkey - if border skirmishes develop that they will not have tipped their hand or signaled what they want to do...In terms of a new commander at NATO’s Norfolk command, which is called Allied Command Transformation, it was the first major NATO headquarters – and the only one to date – in the United States...
You talked about defending Turkey. Now Turkey recently made some statements regarding the fact that they’re against a military intervention in Syria.
I believe Turkish officials said that to Russian officials. And I would imagine that’s what Ankara thinks Moscow wants to hear. We should recall that last week Turkey moved 25 tanks as well as missile batteries and armored personnel carriers along with troops to within two kilometers of the Syrian border, allegedly engaging in a military exercise aimed at the Kurdistan Workers' Party, but in fact claiming that a political party on the other side of the border, in Syria, is linked with the Kurdistan Workers' Party and intimating if not stating quite openly that Turkey reserves the right to intervene militarily against supporters of the PKK, the Kurdistan Workers' Party, inside Syria.
So a scenario could come into existence whereby Turkey stages a provocation. You probably saw today's news, John, that Turkey is claiming they’ve killed something like 117 Kurdistan Workers Party fighters in southeastern Turkey near the Iraqi border. So things are heating up there. And if it's the intent, not only of Turkey, but if it's the intent of the West as a whole to stage a direct military intervention into Syria, then the most likely pretext for doing so would be a clash between Turkish and Syrian forces near the border, on either side of the border, and then Turkey once again returning to NATO and asking for assistance from its fellow NATO members.
Do you have any information on what’s going on in Aleppo? Several high officials, I believe, were captured when the Syrian Army took Aleppo back under its control.
An English-language Iranian website mentioned that a Turkish general had been captured by Syrian forces in Aleppo. And I personally spoke with a Syrian émigré whose brother is in pretty influential circles in Damascus and he mentioned that six or seven foreign officers were captured in Aleppo within the last 24-48 hours. And he mentioned them being not only Turkish, but Arabic-speaking, presumably Saudi, Qatari or other Persian Gulf Arab States. This shouldn’t surprise us that, trying to throw together an organized insurgency, funded certainly and based abroad, would also entail having probably special operations officers, maybe of fairly high rank, from Turkey and from Arab Gulf states involved in the fighting in Aleppo and earlier in Damascus.
You’re saying six or seven generals were captured in Aleppo.
The term that was used in my conversation was generals, but I think we're probably safe in assuming they were officers of some ranking, perhaps not generals.
They were commanding officers, but were they from different countries?
That’s correct.
Have you heard anything about training camps that have been set up on borders of Syria?
That’s an established fact. That Saudi Arabia supplied the funding for a training camp for fighters. Roughly, I believe, 40 kilometers from the Syrian border, if I'm not mistaken, inside Turkey. But this has been going on for quite a while. As long ago as, say, last November or October as I recollect even the Daily Telegraph in Britain was quoting an official of so-called Free Syrian Army stating there were 15,000 fighters – he didn’t specify their nationality, incidentally - but 15,000 fighters inside Turkey receiving material support and training. That’s probably a hyperbolical figure. He was probably exaggerating for propaganda purposes. But it’s an indication this has been going on for some time. The Saudis funding the creation of a special training camp inside Turkey that close to the Syrian border is an escalation of the conflict.
Can you tell us about the problems that NATO has had supplying the troops in Afghanistan?
For five days now what was to be the resumption of NATO supplies from Pakistan into Afghanistan has been held up, supposedly because of security concerns, as I understand it, but as recently as yesterday two NATO vehicles were torched in the Pakistani province of Balochistan. So what we're seeing, in fact, is a resumption of attempted supplying of NATO forces in Afghanistan and we're seeing exactly the same situation that obtained at the time they were occurring before the attack on the Pakistani border outpost in Salala last November that killed 25 Pakistani troops. What we’re seeing is that NATO supply vehicles are being attacked and set afire.
What can you say about Polish President’s announcement a couple of days ago? He said that it had been a mistake to agree with NATO on building ABM infrastructure in Poland.
That is a fascinating question. I’ve been trying to make sense of that since the story broke. I’m not quite sure if he was alluding to the earlier George W. Bush administration plan to put Ground-based Midcourse, longer-range, interceptor missiles or if it’s an allusion to what’s called the European Phased Adaptive Approach of the Obama administration, which is planning to put 24 Standard Missile-3, advanced Standard Missile-3, interceptors in Poland by 2018. It’s unclear whether he's talking about the Bush program that's already been superseded or the Obama program that's still in the works. But in any event, the paraphrase of his comments that I’ve read suggested that a bilateral arrangement with the United States was a mistake and that Poland should develop its own missile interception system and integrate it into or with NATO.
He was repeatedly asked who they would be defending themselves against. He refused to answer the question.
Of course he refused to answer because the answer is not one that the United States wants him to provide. That country is Russia. The argument that the original Ground-based Midcourse interceptors were meant to hit Iranian missiles...one has to in one’s imagination conjure up a map of the world and try to imagine, first of all, how Iran would have the capability of launching basically intercontinental ballistic missiles over Poland, presumably over the Arctic Circle to hit the United States. That's an impossibility, fallacious from the very beginning.
============
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@
============
Voice of Russia
August 8, 2012
Syrian crisis and NATO
John Robles
Alliance allegedly gives nod to Turkey and constrains other countries
Audio at URL above
As the Syrian crisis escalates, Turkey, Syria and Poland are all under NATO's constraint these days. Was a bilateral arrangement of Poland with the US a mistake? Should Poland develop its own missiles interception system integrated into or with NATO?
Interview with Mr. Rick Rozoff, manager of Stop NATO website and mailing list. Part I.
Can you give our listeners an update on what’s going on with NATO?
NATO’s been keeping a very low profile for several weeks. Their website, for example, has not updated for at least three weeks, perhaps a month. I’m not sure what to attribute that to. It may be a conscious decision to keep a low profile as the Syrian crisis escalates. So that should they become involved - a likely scenario, of course, is in alleged defense of Turkey - if border skirmishes develop that they will not have tipped their hand or signaled what they want to do...In terms of a new commander at NATO’s Norfolk command, which is called Allied Command Transformation, it was the first major NATO headquarters – and the only one to date – in the United States...
You talked about defending Turkey. Now Turkey recently made some statements regarding the fact that they’re against a military intervention in Syria.
I believe Turkish officials said that to Russian officials. And I would imagine that’s what Ankara thinks Moscow wants to hear. We should recall that last week Turkey moved 25 tanks as well as missile batteries and armored personnel carriers along with troops to within two kilometers of the Syrian border, allegedly engaging in a military exercise aimed at the Kurdistan Workers' Party, but in fact claiming that a political party on the other side of the border, in Syria, is linked with the Kurdistan Workers' Party and intimating if not stating quite openly that Turkey reserves the right to intervene militarily against supporters of the PKK, the Kurdistan Workers' Party, inside Syria.
So a scenario could come into existence whereby Turkey stages a provocation. You probably saw today's news, John, that Turkey is claiming they’ve killed something like 117 Kurdistan Workers Party fighters in southeastern Turkey near the Iraqi border. So things are heating up there. And if it's the intent, not only of Turkey, but if it's the intent of the West as a whole to stage a direct military intervention into Syria, then the most likely pretext for doing so would be a clash between Turkish and Syrian forces near the border, on either side of the border, and then Turkey once again returning to NATO and asking for assistance from its fellow NATO members.
Do you have any information on what’s going on in Aleppo? Several high officials, I believe, were captured when the Syrian Army took Aleppo back under its control.
An English-language Iranian website mentioned that a Turkish general had been captured by Syrian forces in Aleppo. And I personally spoke with a Syrian émigré whose brother is in pretty influential circles in Damascus and he mentioned that six or seven foreign officers were captured in Aleppo within the last 24-48 hours. And he mentioned them being not only Turkish, but Arabic-speaking, presumably Saudi, Qatari or other Persian Gulf Arab States. This shouldn’t surprise us that, trying to throw together an organized insurgency, funded certainly and based abroad, would also entail having probably special operations officers, maybe of fairly high rank, from Turkey and from Arab Gulf states involved in the fighting in Aleppo and earlier in Damascus.
You’re saying six or seven generals were captured in Aleppo.
The term that was used in my conversation was generals, but I think we're probably safe in assuming they were officers of some ranking, perhaps not generals.
They were commanding officers, but were they from different countries?
That’s correct.
Have you heard anything about training camps that have been set up on borders of Syria?
That’s an established fact. That Saudi Arabia supplied the funding for a training camp for fighters. Roughly, I believe, 40 kilometers from the Syrian border, if I'm not mistaken, inside Turkey. But this has been going on for quite a while. As long ago as, say, last November or October as I recollect even the Daily Telegraph in Britain was quoting an official of so-called Free Syrian Army stating there were 15,000 fighters – he didn’t specify their nationality, incidentally - but 15,000 fighters inside Turkey receiving material support and training. That’s probably a hyperbolical figure. He was probably exaggerating for propaganda purposes. But it’s an indication this has been going on for some time. The Saudis funding the creation of a special training camp inside Turkey that close to the Syrian border is an escalation of the conflict.
Can you tell us about the problems that NATO has had supplying the troops in Afghanistan?
For five days now what was to be the resumption of NATO supplies from Pakistan into Afghanistan has been held up, supposedly because of security concerns, as I understand it, but as recently as yesterday two NATO vehicles were torched in the Pakistani province of Balochistan. So what we're seeing, in fact, is a resumption of attempted supplying of NATO forces in Afghanistan and we're seeing exactly the same situation that obtained at the time they were occurring before the attack on the Pakistani border outpost in Salala last November that killed 25 Pakistani troops. What we’re seeing is that NATO supply vehicles are being attacked and set afire.
What can you say about Polish President’s announcement a couple of days ago? He said that it had been a mistake to agree with NATO on building ABM infrastructure in Poland.
That is a fascinating question. I’ve been trying to make sense of that since the story broke. I’m not quite sure if he was alluding to the earlier George W. Bush administration plan to put Ground-based Midcourse, longer-range, interceptor missiles or if it’s an allusion to what’s called the European Phased Adaptive Approach of the Obama administration, which is planning to put 24 Standard Missile-3, advanced Standard Missile-3, interceptors in Poland by 2018. It’s unclear whether he's talking about the Bush program that's already been superseded or the Obama program that's still in the works. But in any event, the paraphrase of his comments that I’ve read suggested that a bilateral arrangement with the United States was a mistake and that Poland should develop its own missile interception system and integrate it into or with NATO.
He was repeatedly asked who they would be defending themselves against. He refused to answer the question.
Of course he refused to answer because the answer is not one that the United States wants him to provide. That country is Russia. The argument that the original Ground-based Midcourse interceptors were meant to hit Iranian missiles...one has to in one’s imagination conjure up a map of the world and try to imagine, first of all, how Iran would have the capability of launching basically intercontinental ballistic missiles over Poland, presumably over the Arctic Circle to hit the United States. That's an impossibility, fallacious from the very beginning.
============
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@
============
Wed Aug 8, 2012 3:03 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://cominf.
Republic Information Agency (South Ossetia)
August 7, 2012
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of South Ossetia: Courage of the defenders of South Ossetia and the decisive intervention of Russia saved the people from extermination
Tonight, August 7 at 22:00 in the Republic of South Ossetia, there will begin commemorative events on the fourth anniversary of the armed aggression of Georgia against South Ossetia with an exhibition called War Through Paintings’ Eyes which will be held at the Theater Square in the center of Tskhinval.
The action of sorrow "We`ll be remembering everything ..." will start at 23:35: it is the time when in August 2008 the first volleys of artillery struck on the sleeping city.
The Georgian side used modern technology, heavy artillery and aircraft for the elimination of civilians and Russian peacekeepers. As a result, hundreds of civilians in Tskhinval and in the neighbouring settlements and dozens of Russian peacekeepers were killed, and the number of wounded and injured was immeasurably greater. The scale of the devastation was truly appalling.
In those difficult days only the courage of defenders of South Ossetia and resolute and timely intervention of Russia, which had carried out the operation to force Georgia to peace, saved the people of South Ossetia from total annihilation.
Commemorative events will continue on August 8, when it is planned to hold a round table discussion titled "Iron Nykhas" with representatives of the Ossetian Diasporas from the far and near abroad under the auspices of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of South Ossetia
------------
http://cominf.
Republic Information Agency (South Ossetia)
August 7, 2012
South Ossetia is commemorating the fourth anniversary of the August tragedy
Today South Ossetia is commemorating the fourth anniversary of one of the most tragic pages in the history of the Ossetian people - the beginning of the Georgian aggression in August 2008.
The open invasion of the Georgian armed forces into the territory of the Republic was preceded by planned aggravation of the situation in the Georgian-Ossetian conflict.
In early August 2008 special units of Georgian law enforcement agencies, with the active participation of the Georgian part of the Joint Peacekeeping Forces, began systematic artillery and sniper attacks on Tskhinval and Ossetian villages, as well as the positions of law enforcement agencies of the Republic and the North Ossetian Battalion of the Joint Peacekeeping Forces.
The fire was delivered from Georgian border settlements located directly on the territory of South Ossetia's Georgian enclaves. During the first week of the month dozens of civilians been killed and injured. The government of the Republic began evacuating women and children.
The efforts of the Russian and South Ossetian JCC units and the command of the Joint Peacekeeping Forces to prevent the onset of a full-scale war were in vain. The Georgian side in words declared its commitment to a peaceful resolution of the conflict, but in fact brought the negotiation process to a standstill. At the same time, Georgia was actively preparing for military aggression, beginning a build-up of strike forces consisting of selected units of Georgian law enforcement agencies at the borders of South Ossetia.
Shortly before midnight on August 7, they hit with all their might on sleeping Tskhinval and nearby Ossetian villages. Throughout the night the town was being subjected to continuous rocket and artillery fire and air strikes.
In addition to cannon artillery, the Georgian army used against the civilian population multiple-launch Grad rocket systems and cluster aerial bombs, which are considered weapons of mass destruction.
No less intensively the South Ossetian villages of Khetagurovo, Dmenis, Preece, Sarabuk, Satikar, Mugut, Didmukha, Galuanta and others were shelled.
On the morning on August 8, Georgian tanks attacked the southern outskirts of Tskhinval; the barracks of the Russian peacekeepers in the Upper Town were also attacked. The defenders of the town and the peacekeepers engaged in an unequal battle; the streets of Tskhinval were enveloped in flames from exploded Georgian armored vehicles. Fierce street battles continued throughout the day.
Despite statements of the Georgian authorities about the seizure of Tskhinval, all attacks were repulsed, but hundreds of civilians and defenders of the town were killed and thousands of people were injured.
Virtually, not any building escaped destruction in the capital of the Republic.
In this critical situation, President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev made a decision to force the aggressor to peace, and units of the Russian 58th Army entered South Ossetia. Within two days Tskhinval was completely relieved, and Georgian troops were forced out of the Republic and defeated.
South Ossetia will never forget the heroism of the defenders of the homeland and the Russian soldiers who saved the population of the Republic from extermination at the cost of many victims. For the fourth year the memory of the victims of those tragic events has been commemorated by mourning events. They will also be held today.
============
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@
============
Republic Information Agency (South Ossetia)
August 7, 2012
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of South Ossetia: Courage of the defenders of South Ossetia and the decisive intervention of Russia saved the people from extermination
Tonight, August 7 at 22:00 in the Republic of South Ossetia, there will begin commemorative events on the fourth anniversary of the armed aggression of Georgia against South Ossetia with an exhibition called War Through Paintings’ Eyes which will be held at the Theater Square in the center of Tskhinval.
The action of sorrow "We`ll be remembering everything ..." will start at 23:35: it is the time when in August 2008 the first volleys of artillery struck on the sleeping city.
The Georgian side used modern technology, heavy artillery and aircraft for the elimination of civilians and Russian peacekeepers. As a result, hundreds of civilians in Tskhinval and in the neighbouring settlements and dozens of Russian peacekeepers were killed, and the number of wounded and injured was immeasurably greater. The scale of the devastation was truly appalling.
In those difficult days only the courage of defenders of South Ossetia and resolute and timely intervention of Russia, which had carried out the operation to force Georgia to peace, saved the people of South Ossetia from total annihilation.
Commemorative events will continue on August 8, when it is planned to hold a round table discussion titled "Iron Nykhas" with representatives of the Ossetian Diasporas from the far and near abroad under the auspices of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of South Ossetia
------------
http://cominf.
Republic Information Agency (South Ossetia)
August 7, 2012
South Ossetia is commemorating the fourth anniversary of the August tragedy
Today South Ossetia is commemorating the fourth anniversary of one of the most tragic pages in the history of the Ossetian people - the beginning of the Georgian aggression in August 2008.
The open invasion of the Georgian armed forces into the territory of the Republic was preceded by planned aggravation of the situation in the Georgian-Ossetian conflict.
In early August 2008 special units of Georgian law enforcement agencies, with the active participation of the Georgian part of the Joint Peacekeeping Forces, began systematic artillery and sniper attacks on Tskhinval and Ossetian villages, as well as the positions of law enforcement agencies of the Republic and the North Ossetian Battalion of the Joint Peacekeeping Forces.
The fire was delivered from Georgian border settlements located directly on the territory of South Ossetia's Georgian enclaves. During the first week of the month dozens of civilians been killed and injured. The government of the Republic began evacuating women and children.
The efforts of the Russian and South Ossetian JCC units and the command of the Joint Peacekeeping Forces to prevent the onset of a full-scale war were in vain. The Georgian side in words declared its commitment to a peaceful resolution of the conflict, but in fact brought the negotiation process to a standstill. At the same time, Georgia was actively preparing for military aggression, beginning a build-up of strike forces consisting of selected units of Georgian law enforcement agencies at the borders of South Ossetia.
Shortly before midnight on August 7, they hit with all their might on sleeping Tskhinval and nearby Ossetian villages. Throughout the night the town was being subjected to continuous rocket and artillery fire and air strikes.
In addition to cannon artillery, the Georgian army used against the civilian population multiple-launch Grad rocket systems and cluster aerial bombs, which are considered weapons of mass destruction.
No less intensively the South Ossetian villages of Khetagurovo, Dmenis, Preece, Sarabuk, Satikar, Mugut, Didmukha, Galuanta and others were shelled.
On the morning on August 8, Georgian tanks attacked the southern outskirts of Tskhinval; the barracks of the Russian peacekeepers in the Upper Town were also attacked. The defenders of the town and the peacekeepers engaged in an unequal battle; the streets of Tskhinval were enveloped in flames from exploded Georgian armored vehicles. Fierce street battles continued throughout the day.
Despite statements of the Georgian authorities about the seizure of Tskhinval, all attacks were repulsed, but hundreds of civilians and defenders of the town were killed and thousands of people were injured.
Virtually, not any building escaped destruction in the capital of the Republic.
In this critical situation, President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev made a decision to force the aggressor to peace, and units of the Russian 58th Army entered South Ossetia. Within two days Tskhinval was completely relieved, and Georgian troops were forced out of the Republic and defeated.
South Ossetia will never forget the heroism of the defenders of the homeland and the Russian soldiers who saved the population of the Republic from extermination at the cost of many victims. For the fourth year the memory of the victims of those tragic events has been commemorated by mourning events. They will also be held today.
============
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@
============
Wed Aug 8, 2012 3:03 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://news.
Xinhua News Agency
August 8, 2012
U.S. secretary of navy in Singapore for official visit
SINGAPORE: U.S. Secretary of the Navy Raymond Mabus is on an official visit to Singapore, Singapore's Ministry of Defense said Wednesday.
Mabus called on Singapore's Defense Minister Ng Eng Hen on Wednesday morning and is scheduled to call on Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong later.
The Ministry of Defense said the visit "underscores the excellent defense relations between Singapore and the United States, and in particular, the strong partnership between the U.S. Navy and the Republic of Singapore Navy."
Mabus is expected to conclude the visit Friday.
============
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@
============
Xinhua News Agency
August 8, 2012
U.S. secretary of navy in Singapore for official visit
SINGAPORE: U.S. Secretary of the Navy Raymond Mabus is on an official visit to Singapore, Singapore's Ministry of Defense said Wednesday.
Mabus called on Singapore's Defense Minister Ng Eng Hen on Wednesday morning and is scheduled to call on Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong later.
The Ministry of Defense said the visit "underscores the excellent defense relations between Singapore and the United States, and in particular, the strong partnership between the U.S. Navy and the Republic of Singapore Navy."
Mabus is expected to conclude the visit Friday.
============
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@
============
Wed Aug 8, 2012 3:03 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.upi.
United Press International
August 8, 2012
NATO praises ties to South Korea
BRUSSELS: - The Republic of South Korea is a vital partner to the NATO military alliance, NATO's deputy secretary-general said from Brussels.
NATO Deputy Secretary-General Alexander Vershbow met with top-ranking leaders from South Korea this week. A former U.S. envoy to South Korea, Vershbow praised Seoul's contribution to the military alliance, including its participation in the multilateral conflict in Afghanistan.
"South Korea is an important partner across the globe for NATO," he said in a statement. "We hope to continue and bolster our cooperation in the future."
His comments come as U.S. defense officials stress the importance of security in the Asia-Pacific region now that the Iraq war is over and the Afghan conflict is winding down.
U.S. and South Korean military exercises are expected to get under way later this month. Such drills have been a source of contention for the new leadership in Pyongyang.
Kim Jong Un, who took control over North Korea following the December death of his father, Kim Jong Il, visited military units in his country ahead of the bilateral drills, reports the South's Yonhap news agency.
The North Korean leader was declared the supreme commander of the North Korean military recently.
============
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@
============
United Press International
August 8, 2012
NATO praises ties to South Korea
BRUSSELS: - The Republic of South Korea is a vital partner to the NATO military alliance, NATO's deputy secretary-general said from Brussels.
NATO Deputy Secretary-General Alexander Vershbow met with top-ranking leaders from South Korea this week. A former U.S. envoy to South Korea, Vershbow praised Seoul's contribution to the military alliance, including its participation in the multilateral conflict in Afghanistan.
"South Korea is an important partner across the globe for NATO," he said in a statement. "We hope to continue and bolster our cooperation in the future."
His comments come as U.S. defense officials stress the importance of security in the Asia-Pacific region now that the Iraq war is over and the Afghan conflict is winding down.
U.S. and South Korean military exercises are expected to get under way later this month. Such drills have been a source of contention for the new leadership in Pyongyang.
Kim Jong Un, who took control over North Korea following the December death of his father, Kim Jong Il, visited military units in his country ahead of the bilateral drills, reports the South's Yonhap news agency.
The North Korean leader was declared the supreme commander of the North Korean military recently.
============
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@
============
Wed Aug 8, 2012 3:03 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://english.
Voice of Russia
August 7, 2012
US sides with Gulf reactionaries to overthrow Assad
Yekaterina Kudashkina
Interview with Gennady Yevstafyev, retired Lieutenant General of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service
====
[T]his is a challenge, this is an open outburst against the influence of China in the area. This is really an attempt to try to undermine Russian influence in the area. And moreover, after quite a short time we will see very serious events happening in Central Asia. If they succeed now here, then we will see not only Iran, but after Iran we will have increased, enhanced action in the Central Asia.
[V]otes in the General Assembly were bought by the Western countries, especially the US, Britain and sometimes France, with the promises of economic help, military equipment deliveries and any other kind of promises that could come to your mind.
After finishing with Egypt, Libya, they came to Syria. And to the astonishment of progressive mankind, so to say, the Americans make a deal in the name of democracy. Unbelievable! They make a deal with the most reactionary forces in the Arab world, the countries in which democracy is a curse word and is not practiced – with Saudi Arabia and some kingdoms of the Persian Gulf.
====
So, like we see among those countries which oppose all kind of military action to be formally approved of, in regards of Syria – we have Russia, we have Iran, we have China. India has been keeping a lower profile on those issues.
A non-aligned profile.
Yes, this is its common stance, I mean India is one of the leaders of the non-aligned movement. But anyway. Doesn’t that signify that perhaps those three major countries in the region, in the whole of Eurasia, are now opposed to something which is being presented as the mere issue of regime change in Syria? Doesn’t that imply that those countries are well aware of the real dimension of that issue?
First of all, it was quite evident right from the beginning that behind the so-called revolutionaries in Syria who are trying to overthrow Bashar Assad and bring changes into the composition of the Syrian political elite we would see American hands. These hands are covered with blood, there is no doubt. And an admission by Obama that he allows the supply of American military equipment to the fighters against Bashar Assad is really a politically motivated admission, forced admission, that they are behind this. But people in the area which is suffering from American intervention, they didn’t have any doubts about this.
Americans are choosing to do these things not by their own institutions very often, or by private paramilitary companies, but they always find some sort of allies. And in this sense they have identified Saudi Arabia and Turkey, especially Turkey as an adjacent country, as a country which is having some interest in changing the religious and political setup in Syria. And they are doing it through Turkey and Saudi Arabia – they give money, they give equipment, they give armaments. And these countries are supporting the fighters – the Mujahidins – as they call them. And of course this is an open political challenge to the major players in the area because this is an attempt to change the balance of forces in the area.
And if they are succeeding in Syria, then next year, I think in the spring, we will see the growing tension around Iran because the next target would be Iran. And it is a preparation for Iranian attack. Of course we have Israel which is demanding actions, but Israel is playing with fire. I’m looking at Israel with disbelief because Jews are very clever people and it is very strange to see them playing with fire and not trying to find some sort of a negotiated solution.
And this is a challenge, this is an open outburst against the influence of China in the area. This is really an attempt to try to undermine Russian influence in the area. And moreover, after quite a short time we will see very serious events happening in Central Asia. If they succeed now here, then we will see not only Iran, but after Iran we will have increased, enhanced action in the Central Asia. As they call it, the domino will shatter and then will come down.
Sir, so then isn’t it surprising that 130 voted in favour of that resolution? Well, we know the resolution is a non-binding but 130.
It is nothing very special. I have looked in the United Nations covering the failures of the General Assembly. You see, the General Assembly is really in the long run is controlled by a few Western countries and they know how to arrange this kind of actions. And I think the fact that they came to the General Assembly clearly shows that at present they are quite short of real instruments to change the course of the development of the events. And it is an attempt to bring psychological pressure on some countries which are members of the United Nations. In this sense it is not going to be anything new that soon, maybe sooner than later, maybe later than sooner, we will come to know that votes in the General Assembly were bought by the Western countries, especially the US, Britain and sometimes France, with the promises of economic help, military equipment deliveries and any other kind of promises that could come to your mind.
So, I don’t take this resolution as an extremely serious event, though a very unpleasant because it clearly shows that the Americans are still dominating the political arena of the United Nations in general. We understand that the UN is on the territory of the United States and many countries are very much dependent on Americans even in keeping their representations there.
One of the bad news of the last weekend is the resignation of the UN special representative Kofi Annan. And as we know, as he resigned his post he blamed, like he put “finger-pointing and name-calling” at the UN Security Council.
Basically it is connected with the problem of major powers rivalry and deep disagreements. And in this sense there was no chance of bridging the disagreements and Kofi Annan saw it by himself. What we see now is a continuation of the so-called Arab Spring and the Americans right from the beginning had Syria in mind. After finishing with Egypt, Libya, they came to Syria. And to the astonishment of progressive mankind, so to say, the Americans make a deal in the name of democracy. Unbelievable! They make a deal with the most reactionary forces in the Arab world, the countries in which democracy is a curse word and is not practiced – with Saudi Arabia and some kingdoms of the Persian Gulf. So, these are the most reactionary forces in the Arab world and they are trying to destroy Syrian democracy because being a multiethnic state Syria nevertheless claims much more democracy than Saudi Arabia would reach in the next 25 years.
So, the American deal with this kind of forces is very disgusting I would say, but not only disgusting but very disturbing. It clearly shows the irreparable damage to American democracy itself and to the American way of thinking in the future.
============
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@
============
Voice of Russia
August 7, 2012
US sides with Gulf reactionaries to overthrow Assad
Yekaterina Kudashkina
Interview with Gennady Yevstafyev, retired Lieutenant General of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service
====
[T]his is a challenge, this is an open outburst against the influence of China in the area. This is really an attempt to try to undermine Russian influence in the area. And moreover, after quite a short time we will see very serious events happening in Central Asia. If they succeed now here, then we will see not only Iran, but after Iran we will have increased, enhanced action in the Central Asia.
[V]otes in the General Assembly were bought by the Western countries, especially the US, Britain and sometimes France, with the promises of economic help, military equipment deliveries and any other kind of promises that could come to your mind.
After finishing with Egypt, Libya, they came to Syria. And to the astonishment of progressive mankind, so to say, the Americans make a deal in the name of democracy. Unbelievable! They make a deal with the most reactionary forces in the Arab world, the countries in which democracy is a curse word and is not practiced – with Saudi Arabia and some kingdoms of the Persian Gulf.
====
So, like we see among those countries which oppose all kind of military action to be formally approved of, in regards of Syria – we have Russia, we have Iran, we have China. India has been keeping a lower profile on those issues.
A non-aligned profile.
Yes, this is its common stance, I mean India is one of the leaders of the non-aligned movement. But anyway. Doesn’t that signify that perhaps those three major countries in the region, in the whole of Eurasia, are now opposed to something which is being presented as the mere issue of regime change in Syria? Doesn’t that imply that those countries are well aware of the real dimension of that issue?
First of all, it was quite evident right from the beginning that behind the so-called revolutionaries in Syria who are trying to overthrow Bashar Assad and bring changes into the composition of the Syrian political elite we would see American hands. These hands are covered with blood, there is no doubt. And an admission by Obama that he allows the supply of American military equipment to the fighters against Bashar Assad is really a politically motivated admission, forced admission, that they are behind this. But people in the area which is suffering from American intervention, they didn’t have any doubts about this.
Americans are choosing to do these things not by their own institutions very often, or by private paramilitary companies, but they always find some sort of allies. And in this sense they have identified Saudi Arabia and Turkey, especially Turkey as an adjacent country, as a country which is having some interest in changing the religious and political setup in Syria. And they are doing it through Turkey and Saudi Arabia – they give money, they give equipment, they give armaments. And these countries are supporting the fighters – the Mujahidins – as they call them. And of course this is an open political challenge to the major players in the area because this is an attempt to change the balance of forces in the area.
And if they are succeeding in Syria, then next year, I think in the spring, we will see the growing tension around Iran because the next target would be Iran. And it is a preparation for Iranian attack. Of course we have Israel which is demanding actions, but Israel is playing with fire. I’m looking at Israel with disbelief because Jews are very clever people and it is very strange to see them playing with fire and not trying to find some sort of a negotiated solution.
And this is a challenge, this is an open outburst against the influence of China in the area. This is really an attempt to try to undermine Russian influence in the area. And moreover, after quite a short time we will see very serious events happening in Central Asia. If they succeed now here, then we will see not only Iran, but after Iran we will have increased, enhanced action in the Central Asia. As they call it, the domino will shatter and then will come down.
Sir, so then isn’t it surprising that 130 voted in favour of that resolution? Well, we know the resolution is a non-binding but 130.
It is nothing very special. I have looked in the United Nations covering the failures of the General Assembly. You see, the General Assembly is really in the long run is controlled by a few Western countries and they know how to arrange this kind of actions. And I think the fact that they came to the General Assembly clearly shows that at present they are quite short of real instruments to change the course of the development of the events. And it is an attempt to bring psychological pressure on some countries which are members of the United Nations. In this sense it is not going to be anything new that soon, maybe sooner than later, maybe later than sooner, we will come to know that votes in the General Assembly were bought by the Western countries, especially the US, Britain and sometimes France, with the promises of economic help, military equipment deliveries and any other kind of promises that could come to your mind.
So, I don’t take this resolution as an extremely serious event, though a very unpleasant because it clearly shows that the Americans are still dominating the political arena of the United Nations in general. We understand that the UN is on the territory of the United States and many countries are very much dependent on Americans even in keeping their representations there.
One of the bad news of the last weekend is the resignation of the UN special representative Kofi Annan. And as we know, as he resigned his post he blamed, like he put “finger-pointing and name-calling” at the UN Security Council.
Basically it is connected with the problem of major powers rivalry and deep disagreements. And in this sense there was no chance of bridging the disagreements and Kofi Annan saw it by himself. What we see now is a continuation of the so-called Arab Spring and the Americans right from the beginning had Syria in mind. After finishing with Egypt, Libya, they came to Syria. And to the astonishment of progressive mankind, so to say, the Americans make a deal in the name of democracy. Unbelievable! They make a deal with the most reactionary forces in the Arab world, the countries in which democracy is a curse word and is not practiced – with Saudi Arabia and some kingdoms of the Persian Gulf. So, these are the most reactionary forces in the Arab world and they are trying to destroy Syrian democracy because being a multiethnic state Syria nevertheless claims much more democracy than Saudi Arabia would reach in the next 25 years.
So, the American deal with this kind of forces is very disgusting I would say, but not only disgusting but very disturbing. It clearly shows the irreparable damage to American democracy itself and to the American way of thinking in the future.
============
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@
============
Wed Aug 8, 2012 7:06 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://en.trend.
Trend News Agency
August 8, 2012
Iraq decides to ‘reconsider ties’ with Turkey after Davutoğlu’s Kirkuk visit
====
The Kirkuk spat brought already strained ties between Turkey and Iraq to a new low. Turkey has been hosting Tariq al-Hashemi, Iraq's Sunni vice president, who faces charges of terrorism in his own country. Also to the chagrin of the Iraqi government, Turkey has recently started importing crude oil from northern Iraq under a deal with the Iraqi Kurdish administration. Turkey separately imports oil from Iraq through a twin pipeline that runs from Kirkuk to the Mediterranean oil terminal of Ceyhan.
====
Iraq says it has decided to reconsider its relations with Turkey after Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu paid a surprise visit to an oil-rich Iraqi city claimed by both the central government and the country's autonomous Kurdistan region without consulting the Iraqi authorities first, Today's Zaman reported.
Iraqi government spokesman Ali Dabbagh said in a written statement that the Iraqi cabinet decided to reconsider its ties with Turkey in its meeting on Tuesday as a result of Davutoğlu's visit to Kirkuk and tasked a committee with investigating the impact of the visit. The committee, headed by deputy Prime Minister Hussein Sheristani, will advise the Cabinet on the controversial visit soon.
The committee will consist of the foreign, interior and transportation ministers along with the state minister responsible for regions and the intelligence chief.
Turkey earlier lashed out at the Iraqi government for criticizing Ankara for interference in Iraqi affairs after Davutoğlu paid a surprise visit to the contested Iraqi city.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry summoned Iraq's Ambassador in Ankara on Friday to protest Baghdad's subsequent statements after Davutoğlu's visit to the city. Turkish Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Feridun Sinirlioğlu told the Iraqi envoy that Turkey is taking every step in an open way and that it has no hidden agenda. Sinirlioğlu warned Iraqi authorities to be careful while making statements.
Turkey's protest came after Iraq delivered a formal diplomatic note to Turkey's envoy in Baghdad on Friday. The episode, the latest in a series of diplomatic spats and tit-for-tat summonings of envoys between the neighboring countries, is likely to worsen already strained relations.
Davutoğlu surprised the media and angered the Iraqi government by paying a unannounced visit to Kirkuk on Thursday, where he met with and was warmly greeted by representatives of the Turkmen community, who share close ethnic ties with Turks.
The control of Kirkuk, a city of Kurds, Turkmen and Arabs, has long been a matter of contention between the Iraqi central government and the Iraqi Kurds, who hope to annex the city into their autonomous region in the north. The city is currently under the control of the Iraqi government. Turkey, too, has long opposed Kurdish rule of Kirkuk, out of concerns that this would encourage separatist sentiment among its own Kurdish population.
Davutoğlu headed to Kirkuk after talks in Arbil with Massoud Barzani, president of the autonomous Kurdish region, on Turkish concerns about Syrian Kurds. In a statement posted on its website, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry said the visit was "not appropriate" and an "interference in the internal affairs of Iraq" and warned that Turkey would "bear the consequences,
The Kirkuk spat brought already strained ties between Turkey and Iraq to a new low. Turkey has been hosting Tariq al-Hashemi, Iraq's Sunni vice president, who faces charges of terrorism in his own country. Also to the chagrin of the Iraqi government, Turkey has recently started importing crude oil from northern Iraq under a deal with the Iraqi Kurdish administration. Turkey separately imports oil from Iraq through a twin pipeline that runs from Kirkuk to the Mediterranean oil terminal of Ceyhan.
The Maliki government has slammed Turkey for pursuing "hostile" policies in the region and interfering in Iraqi affairs, while Ankara says Maliki's Shiite-led government is trying to monopolize power by suppressing Sunni Arabs and other groups.
============
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@
============
Trend News Agency
August 8, 2012
Iraq decides to ‘reconsider ties’ with Turkey after Davutoğlu’s Kirkuk visit
====
The Kirkuk spat brought already strained ties between Turkey and Iraq to a new low. Turkey has been hosting Tariq al-Hashemi, Iraq's Sunni vice president, who faces charges of terrorism in his own country. Also to the chagrin of the Iraqi government, Turkey has recently started importing crude oil from northern Iraq under a deal with the Iraqi Kurdish administration. Turkey separately imports oil from Iraq through a twin pipeline that runs from Kirkuk to the Mediterranean oil terminal of Ceyhan.
====
Iraq says it has decided to reconsider its relations with Turkey after Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu paid a surprise visit to an oil-rich Iraqi city claimed by both the central government and the country's autonomous Kurdistan region without consulting the Iraqi authorities first, Today's Zaman reported.
Iraqi government spokesman Ali Dabbagh said in a written statement that the Iraqi cabinet decided to reconsider its ties with Turkey in its meeting on Tuesday as a result of Davutoğlu's visit to Kirkuk and tasked a committee with investigating the impact of the visit. The committee, headed by deputy Prime Minister Hussein Sheristani, will advise the Cabinet on the controversial visit soon.
The committee will consist of the foreign, interior and transportation ministers along with the state minister responsible for regions and the intelligence chief.
Turkey earlier lashed out at the Iraqi government for criticizing Ankara for interference in Iraqi affairs after Davutoğlu paid a surprise visit to the contested Iraqi city.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry summoned Iraq's Ambassador in Ankara on Friday to protest Baghdad's subsequent statements after Davutoğlu's visit to the city. Turkish Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Feridun Sinirlioğlu told the Iraqi envoy that Turkey is taking every step in an open way and that it has no hidden agenda. Sinirlioğlu warned Iraqi authorities to be careful while making statements.
Turkey's protest came after Iraq delivered a formal diplomatic note to Turkey's envoy in Baghdad on Friday. The episode, the latest in a series of diplomatic spats and tit-for-tat summonings of envoys between the neighboring countries, is likely to worsen already strained relations.
Davutoğlu surprised the media and angered the Iraqi government by paying a unannounced visit to Kirkuk on Thursday, where he met with and was warmly greeted by representatives of the Turkmen community, who share close ethnic ties with Turks.
The control of Kirkuk, a city of Kurds, Turkmen and Arabs, has long been a matter of contention between the Iraqi central government and the Iraqi Kurds, who hope to annex the city into their autonomous region in the north. The city is currently under the control of the Iraqi government. Turkey, too, has long opposed Kurdish rule of Kirkuk, out of concerns that this would encourage separatist sentiment among its own Kurdish population.
Davutoğlu headed to Kirkuk after talks in Arbil with Massoud Barzani, president of the autonomous Kurdish region, on Turkish concerns about Syrian Kurds. In a statement posted on its website, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry said the visit was "not appropriate" and an "interference in the internal affairs of Iraq" and warned that Turkey would "bear the consequences,
The Kirkuk spat brought already strained ties between Turkey and Iraq to a new low. Turkey has been hosting Tariq al-Hashemi, Iraq's Sunni vice president, who faces charges of terrorism in his own country. Also to the chagrin of the Iraqi government, Turkey has recently started importing crude oil from northern Iraq under a deal with the Iraqi Kurdish administration. Turkey separately imports oil from Iraq through a twin pipeline that runs from Kirkuk to the Mediterranean oil terminal of Ceyhan.
The Maliki government has slammed Turkey for pursuing "hostile" policies in the region and interfering in Iraqi affairs, while Ankara says Maliki's Shiite-led government is trying to monopolize power by suppressing Sunni Arabs and other groups.
============
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@
============
Wed Aug 8, 2012 7:06 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://en.trend.
Trend News Agency
August 8, 2012
President: Georgia to be in NATO enlargement’s first wave
N. Kirtskhalia
Tbilisi: The upcoming NATO summit will be an enlargement summit and Georgia will do its best to join the organization, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili said at a meeting at the Academy of the Georgian Defence Ministry in Gori.
The president met with students and faculty of the Academy. He was accompanied by Defence Minister Dmitry Shashkin and the Chief of Joint Military Staff Devi Chankotadze.
The president said that Georgia will become the first aspirant to NATO as part of the subsequent enlargement policy, and this was clearly stated at the last, Chicago NATO summit.
...
============
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@
============
Trend News Agency
August 8, 2012
President: Georgia to be in NATO enlargement’s first wave
N. Kirtskhalia
Tbilisi: The upcoming NATO summit will be an enlargement summit and Georgia will do its best to join the organization, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili said at a meeting at the Academy of the Georgian Defence Ministry in Gori.
The president met with students and faculty of the Academy. He was accompanied by Defence Minister Dmitry Shashkin and the Chief of Joint Military Staff Devi Chankotadze.
The president said that Georgia will become the first aspirant to NATO as part of the subsequent enlargement policy, and this was clearly stated at the last, Chicago NATO summit.
...
============
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@
============
Wed Aug 8, 2012 7:24 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.aa.
Anadolu News Agency
August 8, 2012
Turkish parliament to convene for extraordinary session
The Turkish Parliament Speaker said he would call on Turkish lawmakers to gather on August 14 for an extraordinary session to discuss the latest circumstances connected with terrorism, Syria and Iraq
ANKARA: Turkish Parliament Speaker Cemil Cicek said on Wednesday he would call on Turkish lawmakers to gather on August 14 for an extraordinary session to discuss the latest circumstances connected with terrorism, Syria and Iraq.
124 lawmakers from the main opposition Republican People's Party had made an application on August 6 for an extraordinary session in the parliament on August 14.
"We evaluated the issue under the Constitution and the regulations. An announcement should be made in accordance with the procedures and principles, and we are going to announce today that the parliamentarians are invited to gather for an extraordinary session on August 14," Cicek told reporters at the Turkish parliament.
The CHP's move came after attack on military outpost in the southeastern province of Hakkari at the weekend by [the] PKK on late Saturday, August 4. During the attack six Turkish soldiers and two village guards were killed. 14 terrorists were also killed in the clashes with security forces in the region.
The bloody PKK attack also came amongst Turkish concerns over emerging Kurdish control over the cities of northern Syria along the Turkish border after the withdrawal of Syrian Army from these overwhelmingly Kurdish areas to fight opposition groups in Aleppo.
============
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@
============
Anadolu News Agency
August 8, 2012
Turkish parliament to convene for extraordinary session
The Turkish Parliament Speaker said he would call on Turkish lawmakers to gather on August 14 for an extraordinary session to discuss the latest circumstances connected with terrorism, Syria and Iraq
ANKARA: Turkish Parliament Speaker Cemil Cicek said on Wednesday he would call on Turkish lawmakers to gather on August 14 for an extraordinary session to discuss the latest circumstances connected with terrorism, Syria and Iraq.
124 lawmakers from the main opposition Republican People's Party had made an application on August 6 for an extraordinary session in the parliament on August 14.
"We evaluated the issue under the Constitution and the regulations. An announcement should be made in accordance with the procedures and principles, and we are going to announce today that the parliamentarians are invited to gather for an extraordinary session on August 14," Cicek told reporters at the Turkish parliament.
The CHP's move came after attack on military outpost in the southeastern province of Hakkari at the weekend by [the] PKK on late Saturday, August 4. During the attack six Turkish soldiers and two village guards were killed. 14 terrorists were also killed in the clashes with security forces in the region.
The bloody PKK attack also came amongst Turkish concerns over emerging Kurdish control over the cities of northern Syria along the Turkish border after the withdrawal of Syrian Army from these overwhelmingly Kurdish areas to fight opposition groups in Aleppo.
============
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@
============
Wed Aug 8, 2012 7:24 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.hurriyet
Hurriyet Daily News
August 8, 2012
Turkey, Iran friction deepening on Syria
Ankara/Tehran: Political tensions between Ankara and Tehran are growing over the conflict in Syria, with Turkey warning Iran to cease blaming Ankara for the Arab republic’s violence while also calling on the Islamic republic to stand against Damascus’ alleged killings.
Recent remarks by Iranian officials could “harm not only the rooted relations of Iran and Turkey, but the diplomacy Iran conducts in the international arena,” Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu told reporters yesterday before departing for a visit to Myanmar.
His statement came one day after holding talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi, to whom Davutoğlu conveyed Ankara’s unease over Iranian Chief of Staff Gen. Hassan Firouzabadi’s suggestion that Turkey was involved in the bloodshed in Syria and accusation that Ankara, along with Saudi Arabia and Qatar, was assisting the “war-waging goals of America.”
The Iranian general’s comments had come as Salehi flew to Turkey on Aug. 7 to solicit Turkish help to effect the release of 48 Iranian pilgrims kidnapped in Syria over the weekend.
Although the comments were not made by Iran’s leaders, they were made by individuals holding official posts, Davutoğlu said. “We would expect these officials, both in Turkey and Iran, to think a few times before making any comments. Our position on the issue was explained to Mr. Salehi in a frank and friendly manner,” Davutoğlu said.
“The Syrian regime bears the whole responsibility” for the tension between Iran and Turkey, Davutoğlu said, adding that Tehran should not try to pin responsibility for Syria’s violence on other countries. “It is our right to expect Iran to assume a constructive attitude in the face of Muslim blood being spilled in Syria during the holy month of Ramadan.”
....
============
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@
============
Hurriyet Daily News
August 8, 2012
Turkey, Iran friction deepening on Syria
Ankara/Tehran: Political tensions between Ankara and Tehran are growing over the conflict in Syria, with Turkey warning Iran to cease blaming Ankara for the Arab republic’s violence while also calling on the Islamic republic to stand against Damascus’ alleged killings.
Recent remarks by Iranian officials could “harm not only the rooted relations of Iran and Turkey, but the diplomacy Iran conducts in the international arena,” Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu told reporters yesterday before departing for a visit to Myanmar.
His statement came one day after holding talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi, to whom Davutoğlu conveyed Ankara’s unease over Iranian Chief of Staff Gen. Hassan Firouzabadi’s suggestion that Turkey was involved in the bloodshed in Syria and accusation that Ankara, along with Saudi Arabia and Qatar, was assisting the “war-waging goals of America.”
The Iranian general’s comments had come as Salehi flew to Turkey on Aug. 7 to solicit Turkish help to effect the release of 48 Iranian pilgrims kidnapped in Syria over the weekend.
Although the comments were not made by Iran’s leaders, they were made by individuals holding official posts, Davutoğlu said. “We would expect these officials, both in Turkey and Iran, to think a few times before making any comments. Our position on the issue was explained to Mr. Salehi in a frank and friendly manner,” Davutoğlu said.
“The Syrian regime bears the whole responsibility” for the tension between Iran and Turkey, Davutoğlu said, adding that Tehran should not try to pin responsibility for Syria’s violence on other countries. “It is our right to expect Iran to assume a constructive attitude in the face of Muslim blood being spilled in Syria during the holy month of Ramadan.”
....
============
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@
============
Wed Aug 8, 2012 8:31 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.albawaba
Al Bawaba (Jordan)
August 8, 2012
Turkish foreign minister's fate is in the hands of Assad
====
[M]any cite the Turkish stance on Libya, where Erdogan had strongly opposed intervention by NATO and the West, and said that Turkey would not stand for it.
But a week later, the prime minister reversed course, after the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a phone call to Davutoglu, and somehow managed to convince him to stand on Washington’s side in return for “large rewards” for Turkey and the Justice and Development Party (AKP).
Shortly thereafter, Ankara hurriedly set up camps for the Syrian refugees on its border, even before any had fled to Turkey.
Furthermore, Saudi Arabia and Qatar both played a key role in dragging Turkey into the Syrian crisis, particularly after the two Gulf nations provided large financial assistance to Ankara with a green light from the United States.
....
The Syrian dissidents who sought refuge in Turkey also contributed to these lies, with Davutoglu seemingly oblivious to the fact that many of them have intimate links with Western capitals, which recruited them for the purpose of getting Turkey involved.
====
Gursel Tekin, the deputy chairman of the opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), has predicted that the Turkish FM Ahmet Davutoglu will be sacked after implicating Turkey in the Syrian crisis. Tekin added that Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is planning to get rid of Davutoglu soon.
For some time now, Davutoglu has been the target of sharp attacks by opposition parties and many media analysts, who blame him for the dismal failure of the Turkish policy in Syria, as he is the one responsible for devising and selling it to the prime minister.
Here, many cite the Turkish stance on Libya, where Erdogan had strongly opposed intervention by NATO and the West, and said that Turkey would not stand for it.
But a week later, the prime minister reversed course, after the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a phone call to Davutoglu, and somehow managed to convince him to stand on Washington’s side in return for “large rewards” for Turkey and the Justice and Development Party (AKP).
Shortly thereafter, Ankara hurriedly set up camps for the Syrian refugees on its border, even before any had fled to Turkey.
Davutoglu has been the target of sharp attacks by opposition parties and many media analysts, who blame him for the dismal failure of the Turkish policy in Syria.Yet the biggest surprise came when Erdogan’s government gave the go-ahead to the Syrian opposition to hold its first conference in the city of Antalya, at the beginning of the uprising.
In fact, the Turkish involvement in Syria started in conjunction with Qatar and Saudi Arabia also entering the fray. Clearly, the Qataris and Saudis had lied to Davutoglu from the outset about the intricacies of the internal situation in Syria and their predictions for the regime’s impending collapse.
But Davutoglu bought these lies all too readily, as he seems to have wagered throughout his statements on President Bashar al-Assad being ousted within a period of three months at most.
The Syrian dissidents who sought refuge in Turkey also contributed to these lies, with Davutoglu seemingly oblivious to the fact that many of them have intimate links with Western capitals, which recruited them for the purpose of getting Turkey involved.
Furthermore, Saudi Arabia and Qatar both played a key role in dragging Turkey into the Syrian crisis, particularly after the two Gulf nations provided large financial assistance to Ankara with a green light from the United States. This put Turkey on the front lines of a future war on Damascus, given the massive border shared between the two countries.
This is not to mention the fact that moving fighters and arms across the Turkish-Syrian border is much easier than doing so through any Arab country, as Turkey is a non-Arab state that once enjoyed a strategic relationship with Syria.
All these developments were sufficient to embroil Turkey further into the Syrian crisis, with all its security-related and political dimensions, not to mention the sectarian and ethnic ones – notably the Kurdish question.
Meanwhile, Cemil Cicek, speaker of the Turkish parliament, was quoted as saying that “the others have pumped us with hot air and then left us alone on the Syrian issue.”
Yet Davutoglu was convinced by Cicek's statement, instead persisting with his hostility toward Syria, despite Western capitals taking a step back from rhetoric, relatively speaking.
Meanwhile, Qatar and Saudi Arabia have distanced themselves from Turkey, sensing that officials there have exposed their lies on the Syrian issue.
Saudi Arabia and Qatar both played a key role in dragging Turkey into the Syrian crisis, particularly after the two Gulf nations provided large financial assistance to Ankara. This perhaps explains why there has been a lack of communication recently between the emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani and King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, on the one hand, and Erdogan, on the other.
Nonetheless, these factors have done little to change Davutoglu's mind. He is convinced and absolutely certain that he is right, despite all the criticism levied at him that suggests he has made gross tactical and strategic miscalculations.
In truth, Ankara lacks experts in Syrian affairs, as well as Arab affairs in general. This may help explain the fact that all analyses of the Syrian situation have been rather skin-deep, and do not go beyond news stories and articles published by the Western media or US and Israeli intelligence reports that are habitually leaked to Turkish journalists.
Most of Ankara’s information about Syria comes from al-Jazeera and al-Arabiya, and the pages of the Syrian opposition on social networking sites.
For example, when Erdogan used the term shabiha (a reference to pro-regime militia in Syria) as conveyed to him by his advisers or perhaps Davutoglu, it did not occur to him that both the Turkish army and security services often use civilian security agents, who are no different to the shabiha, to crack down on peaceful protests.
There are about 100,000 Kurdish village guards in the southeast of Turkey who collaborate with the Turkish army against fighters from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).
But the most important question that remains unanswered on the Turkish political and media scene is this: Until when will Erdogan continue to bear the burden of the flawed policy of his foreign minister, which has cost Turkey dearly and at all levels?
Some reports indicate that Davutoglu controls the staff close to Erdogan, and thus, they seem to be unable to level with the Turkish prime minister regarding the realities of the situation in Syria.
Here, it seems that Davutoglu is determined to overthrow the regime in Syria; otherwise, Erdogan will dismiss him and put an end to his diplomatic career, which he wanted to exploit for future political calculations.
Some talk about the possibility that Davutoglu may become the new prime minister of Turkey, when Erdogan becomes the president of the republic in the summer of 2014, provided that Davutoglu proves his diplomatic and political merit by toppling the Syria regime.
After all, the Americans once said that Davutoglu is the Kissinger of the Middle East, with a red Ottoman fez and blue stars.
Al Bawaba (Jordan)
August 8, 2012
Turkish foreign minister's fate is in the hands of Assad
====
[M]any cite the Turkish stance on Libya, where Erdogan had strongly opposed intervention by NATO and the West, and said that Turkey would not stand for it.
But a week later, the prime minister reversed course, after the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a phone call to Davutoglu, and somehow managed to convince him to stand on Washington’s side in return for “large rewards” for Turkey and the Justice and Development Party (AKP).
Shortly thereafter, Ankara hurriedly set up camps for the Syrian refugees on its border, even before any had fled to Turkey.
Furthermore, Saudi Arabia and Qatar both played a key role in dragging Turkey into the Syrian crisis, particularly after the two Gulf nations provided large financial assistance to Ankara with a green light from the United States.
....
The Syrian dissidents who sought refuge in Turkey also contributed to these lies, with Davutoglu seemingly oblivious to the fact that many of them have intimate links with Western capitals, which recruited them for the purpose of getting Turkey involved.
====
Gursel Tekin, the deputy chairman of the opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), has predicted that the Turkish FM Ahmet Davutoglu will be sacked after implicating Turkey in the Syrian crisis. Tekin added that Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is planning to get rid of Davutoglu soon.
For some time now, Davutoglu has been the target of sharp attacks by opposition parties and many media analysts, who blame him for the dismal failure of the Turkish policy in Syria, as he is the one responsible for devising and selling it to the prime minister.
Here, many cite the Turkish stance on Libya, where Erdogan had strongly opposed intervention by NATO and the West, and said that Turkey would not stand for it.
But a week later, the prime minister reversed course, after the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a phone call to Davutoglu, and somehow managed to convince him to stand on Washington’s side in return for “large rewards” for Turkey and the Justice and Development Party (AKP).
Shortly thereafter, Ankara hurriedly set up camps for the Syrian refugees on its border, even before any had fled to Turkey.
Davutoglu has been the target of sharp attacks by opposition parties and many media analysts, who blame him for the dismal failure of the Turkish policy in Syria.Yet the biggest surprise came when Erdogan’s government gave the go-ahead to the Syrian opposition to hold its first conference in the city of Antalya, at the beginning of the uprising.
In fact, the Turkish involvement in Syria started in conjunction with Qatar and Saudi Arabia also entering the fray. Clearly, the Qataris and Saudis had lied to Davutoglu from the outset about the intricacies of the internal situation in Syria and their predictions for the regime’s impending collapse.
But Davutoglu bought these lies all too readily, as he seems to have wagered throughout his statements on President Bashar al-Assad being ousted within a period of three months at most.
The Syrian dissidents who sought refuge in Turkey also contributed to these lies, with Davutoglu seemingly oblivious to the fact that many of them have intimate links with Western capitals, which recruited them for the purpose of getting Turkey involved.
Furthermore, Saudi Arabia and Qatar both played a key role in dragging Turkey into the Syrian crisis, particularly after the two Gulf nations provided large financial assistance to Ankara with a green light from the United States. This put Turkey on the front lines of a future war on Damascus, given the massive border shared between the two countries.
This is not to mention the fact that moving fighters and arms across the Turkish-Syrian border is much easier than doing so through any Arab country, as Turkey is a non-Arab state that once enjoyed a strategic relationship with Syria.
All these developments were sufficient to embroil Turkey further into the Syrian crisis, with all its security-related and political dimensions, not to mention the sectarian and ethnic ones – notably the Kurdish question.
Meanwhile, Cemil Cicek, speaker of the Turkish parliament, was quoted as saying that “the others have pumped us with hot air and then left us alone on the Syrian issue.”
Yet Davutoglu was convinced by Cicek's statement, instead persisting with his hostility toward Syria, despite Western capitals taking a step back from rhetoric, relatively speaking.
Meanwhile, Qatar and Saudi Arabia have distanced themselves from Turkey, sensing that officials there have exposed their lies on the Syrian issue.
Saudi Arabia and Qatar both played a key role in dragging Turkey into the Syrian crisis, particularly after the two Gulf nations provided large financial assistance to Ankara. This perhaps explains why there has been a lack of communication recently between the emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani and King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, on the one hand, and Erdogan, on the other.
Nonetheless, these factors have done little to change Davutoglu's mind. He is convinced and absolutely certain that he is right, despite all the criticism levied at him that suggests he has made gross tactical and strategic miscalculations.
In truth, Ankara lacks experts in Syrian affairs, as well as Arab affairs in general. This may help explain the fact that all analyses of the Syrian situation have been rather skin-deep, and do not go beyond news stories and articles published by the Western media or US and Israeli intelligence reports that are habitually leaked to Turkish journalists.
Most of Ankara’s information about Syria comes from al-Jazeera and al-Arabiya, and the pages of the Syrian opposition on social networking sites.
For example, when Erdogan used the term shabiha (a reference to pro-regime militia in Syria) as conveyed to him by his advisers or perhaps Davutoglu, it did not occur to him that both the Turkish army and security services often use civilian security agents, who are no different to the shabiha, to crack down on peaceful protests.
There are about 100,000 Kurdish village guards in the southeast of Turkey who collaborate with the Turkish army against fighters from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).
But the most important question that remains unanswered on the Turkish political and media scene is this: Until when will Erdogan continue to bear the burden of the flawed policy of his foreign minister, which has cost Turkey dearly and at all levels?
Some reports indicate that Davutoglu controls the staff close to Erdogan, and thus, they seem to be unable to level with the Turkish prime minister regarding the realities of the situation in Syria.
Here, it seems that Davutoglu is determined to overthrow the regime in Syria; otherwise, Erdogan will dismiss him and put an end to his diplomatic career, which he wanted to exploit for future political calculations.
Some talk about the possibility that Davutoglu may become the new prime minister of Turkey, when Erdogan becomes the president of the republic in the summer of 2014, provided that Davutoglu proves his diplomatic and political merit by toppling the Syria regime.
After all, the Americans once said that Davutoglu is the Kissinger of the Middle East, with a red Ottoman fez and blue stars.
