Roberto Abraham Scaruffi

Saturday, 20 February 2016

The European Union Times


Posted: 20 Feb 2016 11:31 AM PST

British PM David Cameron says the referendum on EU membership will take place on June 23. The announcement comes after the leader clinched a deal with EU leaders Friday evening. He says he will “campaign with all his heart” to urge Britons to agree to remain in the bloc.
“I will go to parliament and propose that the British people decide our future in Europe through an in-out referendum on Europe on Thursday the 23rd of June,” Cameron said, speaking outside 10 Downing Street on Saturday.
The leader stated that the Cabinet has agreed to recommend that the UK remain in the “reformed European Union.”
“I will be campaigning with all my heart and soul to persuade the British people to remain in the reformed European Union,” Cameron said after securing the deal that was approved by the other 27 EU leaders, as quoted by Reuters.
“We are stronger, safer and better off inside this reformed European Union,” Cameron said. He is expected to make a statement to parliament on Monday, triggering the start of the campaign.
Some of the key points of the deal approved on Friday include restrictions on migrants’ in-work benefits, as well as child benefits for the children of EU migrants living overseas.
The deal also includes the amendment of EU treaties to state that references to seek an “ever-closer union” do not apply to the UK. Cameron said that, in short, this means the UK “can never be forced into political integration.”
The agreement also allows for the UK to enact an “emergency safeguard” to protect the City of London, aimed at stopping British firms from being forced to relocate into Europe, and to ensure that British businesses do not face “discrimination” for being outside the eurozone.
Earlier on Saturday, Home Secretary Theresa May stated that it was in the UK’s best interest to remain part of the EU.
“The EU is far from perfect, and no one should be in any doubt that this deal must be part of an ongoing process of change and reform,” May said in a statement, according to the BBC.
“But in my view – for reasons of security, protection against crime and terrorism, trade with Europe, and access to markets around the world – it is in the national interest to remain a member of the European Union,” she added.
Cameron also has the support of Chancellor George Osborne.
Meanwhile, Alex Salmond, the former leader of the Scottish National Party, said on Saturday that if England votes to leave the EU against Edinburgh’s wishes, pressure would rise for a second referendum on whether Scotland should become independent from the United Kingdom.
If “we were dragged out against our will by the votes of a much larger English (electorate), then the pressure for another independence referendum in Scotland would be irresistible and I think very rapid,” Salmond said.
Although Scottish voters will also take part in the referendum on whether to stay in the EU, their votes will be dwarfed by those from England, which represents about 84 percent of the population of the UK, with 53 million people.
However, not everyone is rallying for the UK to remain a member of the EU. Justice Secretary Michael Gove, one of Cameron’s closest allies, will campaign to leave the bloc, along with the UK Independence Party (UKIP).
Referring to the deal secured by Cameron on Friday, the leader of UKIP in Wales, Nathan Gill, said it does nothing for the people of Britain.
“I don’t think it’s significant at all. [Cameron] hasn’t asked for much, he certainly hasn’t asked for the things that the British people are bothered about,” Gill told RT.
“The people of Britain will see through this for what it is – it’s just smoke and mirrors. It’s a meaningless negotiation, a piece of paper, a ‘benefits brake’ [for migrants] for seven years, but then that’s it. [The brake] can only be applied once. Are we saying that the immigration problem is actually going to be solved in the next seven years? Of course not,” he continued.
British voters are divided over whether or not to leave the EU, and opinion polls show that a large number of Britons have yet to make up their minds.
However, Gill believes Cameron’s EU deal will fail to sway voters.
“I don’t think the new terms, the special status, or whatever they’re calling it will make any difference to people. The 23rd of June is going to be independence day for the United Kingdom. It’s fantastic. We’ve been campaigning for this for 23 years,” he said.
However, betting firm Ladbrokes said on Saturday that there is now a 69 percent chance of the UK remaining in the EU, with a 31 percent chance of it leaving.
If Britain leaves the EU, the bloc would lose its second-largest economy, one of its top two military powers and its richest financial center.
Those in favor of leaving the EU, however, say that Britain would prosper, away from what they say is a doomed Germany-dominated bloc.
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Posted: 20 Feb 2016 10:39 AM PST


Earlier this week a Saudi political analyst told RT’s Arab network the kingdom has a nuclear weapon.
Dahham Al-‘Anzi made the claim while saying Saudi Arabia is engaged in an effort to “minimize the Iranian threat in the Levant and Syria.”
Although Saudi Arabia has officially denied it has a nuclear weapons program and has publicly stated it opposes nuclear weapons in the Middle East, it has funded a military nuclear program and received scientific assistance from the United States and Pakistan.
Despite this cooperation, US Secretary of State John Kerry told the Saudis in January there would be “all kinds of NPT consequences” if Riyadh received a nuclear weapon from Pakistan.
The Saudis began financing Pakistan’s atomic weapons project in 1974. “Our achievements are yours,” the Pakistani president, General Zia-ul-Haq, told the Saudis in the 1980s.
In the late 1980s the Saudis secretly bought dozens of CSS-2 ballistic missiles from China. The CSS-2, also known as the Dong Feng, is based on the Russian 9K720 Iskander missile. The intercontinental ballistic missile is designed to carry a 3 megaton nuclear warhead to a distance up to 12,000 kilometers.
“I do think that the Saudis believe that they have some understanding with Pakistan that, in extremis, they would have claim to acquire nuclear weapons from Pakistan,” said Gary Samore, Obama’s former counter-proliferation adviser.
In 2013 a senior NATO spokesman told the BBC nuclear weapons made in Pakistan on behalf of Saudi Arabia are ready to be delivered. In 2009 King Abdullah warned visiting US special envoy to the Middle East Dennis Ross Saudi Arabia “will get nuclear weapons” if Iran pursued a nuclear weapons program.
Following the P5+1 nuclear deal with Iran, the Saudis reasserted their desire to obtain a nuclear weapon.
“I think Saudi Arabia would seriously try to get the bomb if Iran did. It’s just like India and Pakistan. The Pakistanis said for years they didn’t want one, but when India got it, so did they,”said Jamal Khashoggi, the head of a Saudi news channel owned by the Saudi royal family.
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Posted: 19 Feb 2016 12:07 PM PST


In a remarkable exchange with CBS anchor Scott Pelley, Hillary Clinton refused to say that she has never or will never lie to the American people.
Pelley cited Jimmy Carter’s infamous declaration to voters in 1976 that “I will not lie to you” and asked Hillary “Have you always told the truth?”
Visibly squirming and wide eyed, Hillary claimed “I have always tried to” tell the truth, and added “I don’t believe I ever have” lied to the American people.
“Some might call that ‘wiggle room’” Pelley responded after an awkward silence.
Hillary critics noted that trying to tell the truth and believing one hasn’t lied are very different things to actually telling the truth and not lying.
Others suggested that the Benghazi hearings and a certain email server have already proven whether or not Hillary has and will lie to the American people.
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Posted: 19 Feb 2016 10:34 AM PST

As tensions escalate between Turkey and Russia, NATO has warned Ankara that it will not take part in a war provoked by the Turkish government.
Last November, Turkey shot down a Russian jet flying through Syrian airspace. While many feared that the incident would plunge both countries into war, conflict was avoided, though relations between Moscow and Ankara have remained chilly.
As Turkey pushes to deploy ground forces across its border to remove the legitimate government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, the Turkish government is, again, threatening the world with war.
“The armed forces of the two states are both active in fierce fighting on the Turkish-Syrian border, in some cases just a few kilometers from each other,” one NATO official told Der Spiegel.
Ankara’s aggression seems partially based on the assumption that, should conflict erupt, Turkey will be supported by its NATO allies. According to Article 5 of the NATO treaty, the collective defense clause would be invoked if any member state is attacked.
But European leaders have made it abundantly clear that they have no interest in participating in a war of Turkey’s making.
“NATO cannot allow itself to be pulled into a military escalation with Russia as a result of the recent tensions between Russia and Turkey,” Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn told Der Spiegel.
Of Article 5, Asselborn stressed that “the guarantee is only valid when a member state is clearly attacked.”
Germany appears to agree.
“We are not going to pay the price for a war started by the Turks,” said a German diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity.
NATO leadership made similar warnings soon after Turkey’s downing of the Russian bomber last year.
“We have to avoid that situations, incidents, accidents spiral out of control,” NATO General Secretary Jens Stoltenberg said at the time. “I think I’ve expressed very clearly that we are calling for calm and de-escalation. This is a serious situation.”
On Friday, French President Francois Hollande stressed the need to prevent conflict between Moscow and Ankara.
“There is a risk of war between Turkey and Russia,” he said in an interview with France Inter radio.
As Turkey calls to escalate the violence in Syria, Russia has called for a meeting of the United Nations Security Council to address its concerns over the rising tensions.
“The situation is becoming more tense due to increased tensions on the Syrian-Turkish border and Turkey’s stated plans to send troops to northern Syria,” reads a statement from the Russian Foreign Ministry.
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Posted: 19 Feb 2016 09:54 AM PST

Finally, some honesty from the media!
This weeks’ cover of wSieci, titled “Islamic Rape of Europe” shows a White woman wearing an EU flag dress being groped by the hands of immigrant men.
The article begins: “The people of old Europe after the events of New Year’s Eve in Cologne painfully realized the problems arising from the massive influx of immigrants. The first signs that things were going wrong, however, were there a lot earlier. They were still ignored or were minimized in significance in the name of tolerance and political correctness…”
The article finishes by asking “Does Europe Want to Commit Suicide?”
“Suicide” is just one viewpoint of what really is happening. You could argue that because the people vote for these parties, they are committing suicide.
It’s quite a weak argument though, because the people they vote for rarely say anything publicly about their anti-European agenda.
It is not the people who want to commit suicide, it is the elite who want to destroy the White majority, in both Europe and other Western societies.
There is an actual legal definition for what they are doing to us; it’s called “genocide.”
Genocide does not have to be violent, it can simply be government policies.
        
Posted: 19 Feb 2016 09:50 AM PST

New photos of a Greek village sinking since a massive landslide struck in 2012 show the devastating impact the natural disaster and lack of official response has had on the once-thriving community.
Ropoto, in central Greece, is now abandoned after villagers were forced to leave their homes due to ongoing landslides.
Many buildings have collapsed completely, while others appear to remain largely intact. The terrain is still sinking, according to Greek Reporter.com, which recently filmed a documentary depicting the plight of those affected.
More than 300 families were forced to leave their homes due to the sudden shift of soil, and have not received any government assistance or compensation, according to a local resident interviewed by the documentary makers.
“The village no longer exists. People cannot live there,” said the man, who is not named in the film.
He claimed nothing was done to channel the rainwater away or protect the homes, and residents were left to fend for themselves.
He also told reporters that some people still have to pay property tax, despite the structural deterioration of their homes.



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Posted: 19 Feb 2016 09:13 AM PST

Police Inspector in Stockholm, Lars Alvarsjö, issues a severe warning that the Swedish legal system – which is a cornerstone of a democratic society – is about to collapse.
In an article in Svenska Dagbladet, the police inspector writes that the huge influx of asylum seekers, criminal gangs and religious extremism have stretched the Swedish police to a breaking point.
– In some areas, everyday situations are that police are meet with stones and Molotov cocktails, writes Alvarsjö.
Researcher of terrorism and radicalization at the Swedish Defence Academy, Magnus Ranstorp, agrees with the police assessment and believes that the situation in Sweden is catastrophic. He does not believe that the police’s warning will make sufficient impressions on the political leadership.
– In the worst areas, extremists have taken over, while the Swedes are apathetic spectators watching. The entire legal system and security is threatened by the police on the verge of collapse and it just seems to get worse, says Ranstorp to Kristeligt Dagblad.
The problems are the result of decades of rejection of the problems in immigrant dense neighborhoods and suburbs. These areas are characterized by high unemployment and low level of education. Crime and radicalization flourishes.
Ranstorp believes the police situation is a symptom of a larger social problem. The elite and ordinary people will for ideological reasons not realize what is about to happen:
“The police situation is a symptom of a larger social problem, where the distances are huge, but there is no response. Ordinary Swedes sit back in the big cities and refuse to see what is happening, because in their world there is no problem,” he says.
The development of parallel societies has gone dangerously far in Sweden. 52 areas or districts in Sweden now qualify as “lawless, dangerous and vulnerable places.” 20 of those are located in Stockholm.
The Stockholm police has already said that it is no longer able to perform all its tasks and no longer can protect the population, as too many resources are needed for criminal asylum seekers – mainly Moroccan boys and young men – operating at various places, including the central station, where they steal and harass passersby. There are numerous reports of sexual harassment and groping of girls and women. In addition, the regular call-outs to the country’s overcrowded reception centers because of threats, fights, abuse and vandalism.
Police in Gothenburg had on average between four and five call-outs every single day to various reception centers and residential units for so-called unaccompanied minor asylum seekers in the period October 20 – January 8.
Altogether, Swedish police has, during only the last four months, responded to some 5,000 “incidents” at the country’s asylum centers.
Ranstorp believes it must go as far as to a complete collapse before the political leadership decides to act:
“Warnings are not enough and there must be a total collapse of the police before anything changes. We are in a disastrous situation with widening gaps between immigrants in the suburbs and the rest of society. It creates extreme right and Islamic radicalization,” he says.
With 20,000 policemen, Sweden belongs to the countries in Europe that has by far the smallest police force in relation to the population.
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Posted by Roberto Abraham Scaruffi at 19:40