The War in Ukraine creates new tends: Proliferation of weapons and widening of conflict areas

The War in Ukraine creates new tends: Proliferation of weapons and widening of conflict areas

    Monday, August 15, 2022   No comments

This is serious development: Russia will widen its operation in Ukraine to cover the range of weapons supplied by NATO to Kyiv; that seems to be the new strategy developed by Russian leaders, including supplying nations that are friendly to Russia with weapons the same way the West supplies it allies.

Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov warned that "if the West provides Kyiv with long-range weapons, the geographical objectives of the special operation in Ukraine will move beyond its current goals."

Russia has previously sent a memorandum to NATO countries, due to the supply of weapons to Ukraine. Earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov indicated that any shipment "containing weapons to Ukraine would become a legitimate target for Russia," considering that NATO's arming of Ukraine was "playing with fire."

This comes after Russian President Vladimir Putin stressed today, Monday, that Moscow values its relations with the countries of Latin America, Asia and Africa, and is ready to supply its allies with modern weapons. He made the remarks while opening the Army-2022 International Military-Technical Forum and the International Army Games-2022, which started on Monday in the Moscow Region.

This year, over 6,000 soldiers and officers from 37 countries of the world are taking part in them.

Mass demonstrations in northern Syria condemning Ankara's call for "reconciliation" between the government and the opposition

Mass demonstrations in northern Syria condemning Ankara's call for "reconciliation" between the government and the opposition

    Friday, August 12, 2022   No comments

Thousands protested across parts of rebel-held northern Syria [See locations in attached pam] on Friday after Turkey's foreign minister called for reconciliation between Ankara-backed Syrian opposition groups and the government of President Bashar al-Assad.

More than 11 years after the outbreak of the civil war in Syria, the northwestern region near the Turkish border is the last stronghold still under the control of fighters seeking to overthrow Assad, with control divided between militant groups and other fighters backed by Turkey.

The Turkish government maintains thousands of troops in the area and supports an alliance of anti-Assad armed groups under the banner of the Syrian National Army.

"We need to bring the opposition and the regime together in order to somehow reconcile, otherwise there will be no lasting peace," Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told reporters in Ankara on Thursday.

After he spoke, protests began in areas of Syria controlled by opposition forces, with people waving opposition flags in the streets on Thursday night and pulling Turkish flags from buildings including police stations and local administration offices.

"We have suffered from this criminal for 11 years and we will continue our revolution," teacher Mahmoud Salo, 45, told Reuters during a protest in Azaz, Idlib, on Friday.

About three thousand people gathered in Azaz on Friday, while protests erupted in other areas of the northwestern Idlib province and in the northern areas of the neighboring province of Aleppo.

A Reuters reporter in the region said many Turkish consultants who work in a number of local institutions did not come to work on Friday.

Ahmet Shobak, a refugee from Aleppo who works as an engineer in Azaz, said Cavusoglu's comments were unacceptable.

"If Turkey wants to stand with the world that is already against us, so be it, it won't change anything much," he added. But we hope that Turkey's position will become more positive."

Yesterday, the cities and towns under the control of the Syrian opposition, in the north of the country, witnessed protests against Çavuşoğlu’s statements. The cities and towns of Al-Bab, Azaz, Sego, Jarabulus, Al-Ra’i and Marea in the countryside of Aleppo, Salqin and Idlib witnessed demonstrations during which protesters burned the Turkish flag and raised slogans condemning the statements of the Turkish Foreign Minister, calling To the continuation of the protests, the reactions of the Syrian opposition, through its statements and the positions of its leaders, varied, between those who aligned with the demonstrations and denounced the new Turkish position, and the opposition forces that refused to offend Turkey and denounced the burning of the Turkish flag.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu revealed a meeting he had with Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Miqdad on the sidelines of the Non-Aligned Conference in Belgrade months ago, declaring that Turkey was seeking reconciliation between the regime and the opposition for the sake of Syria's stability and territorial integrity.

Organizations and figures in the Syrian opposition denounced Çavuşoğlu’s statements, and the so-called Department of Political Affairs in the opposition Salvation Government in northern Syria, where Turkish influence areas, said, “We followed up with strong condemnation these statements that offended the Syrian people and their great revolution, as well as the positions of the countries that sympathized, supported and supported this blessed revolution, Proceeding from its moral and humanitarian principles, foremost of which is the Republic of Turkey and its generous government, these statements come in a context of interest that is not befitting the principles of Turkish policy that is biased towards the just causes of oppressed peoples.

Fahim Issa, the commander-in-chief of the "Revolutionary" movement, one of the largest armed groups in the north, said, "There is no reconciliation with Assad, no reconciliation with terrorism and killers. There is no place for Assad or the regime in the future of Syria." "We will not betray the blood of our martyrs, and we will not betray the country's revolution," he added.

Meanwhile, the Defense Minister of the so-called Syrian Interim Government, Hassan Hamadeh, said: “At the first cry of the people wanting to overthrow the regime, it was the point of no return. It's over, there is no alternative to toppling Assad."

Opposition figures praised the movements and demonstrations denouncing the statements of the Turkish Foreign Minister. While others denounced the demonstration and burning of the Turkish flag.

The so-called Syrian National Army confirmed in a statement that “the flag of the Turkish Republic, as the flag of the Syrian revolution, is a source of pride, a title for victory, and a emblem for a great people, and its place is above the heads of the brave and the bodies of the martyrs.”

The statement stressed the need to hold accountable those who crossed their borders by insulting the Turkish flag.

As for the Ministry of Defense in the opposition’s interim government, it retracted in a statement, describing the Turkish flag as “sacred for the people for those who shed their blood on Syrian lands from the Turkish army and people.”

She vowed to hold accountable those she called "ignorant people" who do not represent the constants of the revolution.

She explained that some parties in Syria aim to "destabilize the relations of brotherhood and blood between the Turkish and Syrian peoples, to serve the enemies."

As for the National Coalition of Revolutionary and Opposition Forces, it stressed its refusal to burn the flag of the Turkish people, which hosts 4 million Syrians, and indicated that the blood of the Turkish people was mixed with the blood of the Syrians.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry clarified the Turkish position on the situation in Syria, and said in a statement issued by the ministry’s spokesman: “Turkey, since the beginning of the crisis in Syria, has been the country that has worked the most to support solutions to the crisis based on achieving the legitimate demands of the people.”

He added: “In this context, Turkey was at the forefront of the parties that worked to consolidate the ceasefire on the ground, and contributed to the Astana and Geneva tracks, building the Constitutional Committee and providing full support to the opposition and the negotiating body. And it is working on a solution in Syria in accordance with Security Council Resolution 2254.

Journalism, Where Bias Comes From?

Journalism, Where Bias Comes From?

    Friday, August 12, 2022   No comments

Reporting on war is rearely objective: 

Here, an injured child receives frontpage coverage, a name, age, and a photo to accompany the story.

Other children, though, no names, no faces, no stories--just a number: 15.

China’s defense ministry issues fresh, rare warning ‘action the most powerful language’ over Pelosi’s Taiwan visit; reinforces resolve

China’s defense ministry issues fresh, rare warning ‘action the most powerful language’ over Pelosi’s Taiwan visit; reinforces resolve

    Sunday, July 31, 2022   No comments

Action is the most powerful language, said the Chinese Defense Ministry on Thursday as its spokesperson stressed the sensitivity of the Taiwan question again after China issued  six warnings against US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's potential visit to Taiwan island over the past few days.

The frequency of Chinese warnings and the remarks different departments use fully demonstrate China's determination to take any necessary military measures to counter US provocations and safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity, analysts said. 

The People's Liberation Army (PLA) will not tolerate any "Taiwan independence" moves or interference from external forces, and will resolutely stop such attempts, Wu Qian, spokesperson for the Defense Ministry, said at Thursday's press briefing. 

The root cause of a turbulent Taiwan Straits is the collusion between "Taiwan independence" forces and external interfering forces, Wu said, urging relevant parties to learn to adapt to the new reality (PLA operations near the Straits), to reflect on their own deeds and "most importantly, to pull back from the brink." 

Though Wu was responding to a question about PLA operations on the Taiwan Straits, analysts interpreted Wu's words as another stern warning against the US government and some US politicians who are pushing Pelosi's possible visit to Taiwan island. [Read GT story here].

China main English language media also added its view warning of serious consequences in an editorial titled, US better clear the ‘mine’ of Pelosi’s Taiwan trip beforehand: Global Times editorial.

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has laid a mine where China-US relations and the situation around the Taiwan Straits converge. She lit the match, but it remains uncertain whether she will truly ignite the mine. According to the itinerary of Pelosi's Asia trip as reported by US media, her trip includes Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and Singapore, and the island of Taiwan was listed as "tentative." Many believe this is a trick by Pelosi, who is very likely to fly to Taiwan island from Japan and make a sudden visit.

This kind of sneaky trick is indeed difficult to predict, but one thing is certain: China will take strong measures to resolutely respond and counteract, and it will let the huge risk created by Pelosi have an impact on herself. This is not only a firm and clear attitude, but will certainly be accompanied by a strong and concrete course of action plan.

China's response has been clear, as always. "Those who play with fire will perish by it." This was said to Pelosi and the Taiwan secessionist forces that support her. A White House official called it a metaphor that China regularly tends to use. He completely misread and misjudged the essence and weight of this sentence. Any act of stepping on the red line will surely hit the iron wall of China's counterattack. China's repeated public warnings are by no means jokes. Washington should turn to history to see that China has always kept its word.

No matter from the perspective of international law or international morality, it is legitimate and necessary for China to safeguard its national sovereignty and territorial integrity from provocation. Today, China's will and ability in this regard is without doubt. US President Joe Biden has reiterated that he adheres to the one-China policy and does not support "Taiwan independence." What kind of behavior is a visit to Taiwan island by Washington's "No.3 figure"? If you come to offend me, I will make you bear the consequences. This is not China threatening or intimidating anyone, but safeguarding and defending its own core interests. [read the editorial here].

In Sunday, Chinese intelligence said it has information that US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi will visit Taiwan on August 4 and meet with Taiwan's president in the capital, Taipei.

This Chinese announcement comes after a statement issued by Pelosi about her Asian tour that includes Asian countries, from which her visit to Taiwan was dropped.

China had warned America against Pelosi's visit to Taiwan, and said that the completion of the visit means a violation of its national sovereignty, and requires a firm response. Chinese government media said that it may reach a military response in response to the American insistence on this provocative visit.

Meanwhile, Chinese national media outlets appear to be preparing for war, replaying videos like this one:

Pentagon: Ukraine strike on POW detention center 'unintended'

Pentagon: Ukraine strike on POW detention center 'unintended'

    Friday, July 29, 2022   No comments

"If Kyiv bombed the pre-trial detention center in Lilinovka, where Ukrainian prisoners of war were killed, it was inadvertently done," a senior Pentagon official said.

And the official added, today, Friday: “If the strike was from the Ukrainian side, I assure you that they do not want to do that.”

Today, Friday, July 29, fragments of HIMARS ammunition were found at the site of the bombing of the former detention center in Lilinovka, according to the correspondent of the “Sputnik” agency.

According to the regional defense headquarters of the Donetsk Republic, the death toll from the strike by Ukrainian forces on the center in Lilinovka, where Ukrainian prisoners of war are held, has risen to 53.

Eduard Basurin, deputy head of the People's Forces of the Donetsk Republic, also confirmed to reporters that Kyiv knew that there were Ukrainian prisoners at the center in Linovka in the Donetsk People's Republic.

The president of the Chechen Republic, Kadyrov, addresses Kyiv authorities: Our fighters will come to you soon

The president of the Chechen Republic, Kadyrov, addresses Kyiv authorities: Our fighters will come to you soon

    Thursday, July 28, 2022   No comments

A 10-minute video clip, which was published today, Thursday, on Kadyrov's channel in the "Telegram" website, shows the line-up of fighters and on their repulsion written in black and white "To Kyiv", as well as armored and special equipment on the parade ground bearing the same inscription.

Addressing the Ukrainian authorities, the Chechen presidentwrote: “The Kyiv elite, sitting on warm chairs in their golden offices, should know that soon the warriors will knock on their doors, those whose hearts are filled with anger because of your criminal orders. You will suffer the consequences of what you have been doing for eight long years. This you cannot doubt."

Moreover, Kadyrov stressed that Chechen fighters are ready to storm any residential area, stressing that “by order of Supreme Commander Vladimir Putin, all these fighters are ready to storm any area. If there is an order, there will be a result. This is an irrefutable fact. We With Russia, for a world free of extreme nationalism.

Here is his full statement that accompanied the video posted on Kadyrov's channel:

No matter what threats the enemies throw, the employees of the Chechen special forces will not be embarrassed in any way. There have been many attempts to sow a seed of fear in the hearts of the warriors of vast Russia throughout its centuries-old history, but the enemies only incur their wrath. Anger, which erases enemies into dust along with their insidious plans.

 

There are no impossible tasks for our warriors, they have proven this more than once. Courageous warriors, as if by choice, despise nationalism and those who are loyal to this vile idea with all their hearts. The abomination that the West presents as the true values ​​of modern society will be stopped here. And those people whose true intentions are hidden under a thick layer of hypocrisy will find their doom.

 

The sacred duty of everyone is to protect the land that she nurtured and raised. And our dedicated guys know this like no one else. Long years of struggle against international terrorism have forged real heroes out of them, who will go even into an unequal battle, because the security of the country and the citizens of the fraternal republics is at stake.

The Kyiv elite, seated in warm armchairs in their golden offices, must know that soon warriors will knock on their doors, whose hearts are filled with rage because of your criminal orders. The consequences of what you have done for eight long years will overtake you. You can be sure of this.

On the first order of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief Vladimir Putin, all these fighters are ready to storm any settlement. There will be a team - there will be a result. This is an irrefutable fact. We are for Russia, for a world cleansed of nationalism! AKHMAT-POWER! ALLAH AKBAR!

 

   

This is why so many people believe the label “fake news”, to be a valid description to US mainstream news media

This is why so many people believe the label “fake news”, to be a valid description to US mainstream news media

    Saturday, July 23, 2022   No comments

In this media review, our readers are invited to reflect on this headline, "‘He simply cannot be trusted:’ World leaders slam Putin’s attack on Odesa following sea corridor deal", and the news story published by US media outlet, NCBC. 

Just minutes before the dust settled from this event, Western media took the outrage of Western political leaders and ran with it, with no due diligence and thoughtful wording of the story so that exaggeration do not distract from the human cost of an actual war that is going on. The headline suggests that this attack, which is just one of many attacks in Ukraine, which is a war zone (Russia strikes everywhere everyday, not just in Odesa (see action map)), have united world leaders against Putin, Russia’s president. 

For those who would bother to read the news story, they would be left with the impression that this WORLD consists of a couple of Western political leaders, and a celebrity chef named Jose Andres. That is it. Not one world leader from Africa, Asia, or Latin America, where leaders of more than 80% of the world population live, not a single one is quoted in the news story. 

It is these exaggerations and casual dismissal of the views and positions of world leaders who happen to be from the Global South that make media lose more credibility to the extent that their type of coverage gives credibility to label made famous by someone whose relationship with the truth is beyond repair: Fake News!

Read the headline and the story for yourself, we preserved the entire file below for your pleasure:

Action Map: Russian strikes and fighting action across Ukraine over the last three weeks

Putin visits Iran to participate in a summit with Erdogan and President

Putin visits Iran to participate in a summit with Erdogan and President

    Tuesday, July 12, 2022   No comments

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed today, Tuesday, that Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit Tehran on July 19.

Peskov said that President Putin will hold talks with his Iranian counterpart, Ibrahim Raisi, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, within the framework of the meeting of leaders of the guarantor states of the Astana Process on the Syrian settlement.

He continued, "The president's trip to Tehran is already being prepared. There will be a meeting of the heads of the guarantor states of the Astana process to promote the Syrian settlement. In addition to the tripartite meeting, of course there will also be bilateral meetings and separate talks with the Turkish president," adding: "Yesterday we announced high-level contacts. The level between Putin and Erdogan, and the meeting will take place there."

The Iranian Mehr news agency had earlier quoted the head of the Iranian Parliament's Economy Committee, Mohammad Pour Ibrahimi, that President Putin would visit Iran next week.

"Potential consultations between Putin and my president are likely to focus on developing economic cooperation between Iran and Russia," Ebrahimi said.

The announcement of the visit coincides with US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan saying that his country has information that Tehran is preparing to provide Moscow with hundreds of drones, and train Russian soldiers to use them.

In a meeting with his Iranian counterpart, on June 29, on the sidelines of the sixth summit meeting of the countries bordering the Caspian Sea, Putin confirmed that both countries are in constant communication on security issues, and that they have many things to talk about.

Raisi said, at the time, that Russian-Iranian trade relations are developing, and nothing will stop this development, commenting: "The agreements we reached are under implementation, and this indicates that the will of our two countries aims to develop trade and economic relations."

27 years later, an apology for the Srebrenica Genocide

27 years later, an apology for the Srebrenica Genocide

    Tuesday, July 12, 2022   No comments

The Netherlands on Monday offered its "deepest apologies" for the role played by Dutch peacekeepers in the Srebrenica genocide.

Roughly 8,000 Bosnian Muslims were brutally murdered by attacking Bosnian Serb forces 27 years ago.

For the first time since the 1995 massacre, Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren apologized to survivors for the Dutch peacekeepers' failure to prevent the killings.

"The international community failed to offer adequate protection to the people of Srebrenica. The Dutch government shares responsibility for the situation in which that failure occurred. And for this, we offer our deepest apologies," Ollongren said during a ceremony in Potocari.

Sourse of the News Story: https://www.dw.com/en/srebrenica-massacre-netherlands-apologizes-after-27-years/a-62434446

Media Review: The Causes and Consequences of the Ukraine Crisis

Media Review: The Causes and Consequences of the Ukraine Crisis

    Monday, June 27, 2022   No comments

With the Russian military operation in Ukraine entering its fifth month, voices against American policies began to rise, especially as the sanctions policy it imposed directly affected European countries and gave counterproductive effects that Washington has not succeeded in avoiding so far.

In a speech adapted into an article with the title, the Causes and Consequences of the Ukraine Crisis, University of Chicago political science professor John J. Mearsheimer has described the war in Ukraine as a multidimensional disaster, likely to get worse in the near future. "When a war is successful, no one cares much about its causes, but when its outcome is catastrophic, understanding how it happened becomes very important. Everyone would like to know how this horrific situation was reached," he said.

Mearsheimer believes that, "With regard to the Ukrainian war, the United States is primarily responsible for causing this crisis. This does not mean that Putin started the war and that he is responsible for Russia's conduct in the war. Nor does this mean denying that America's allies bear some responsibility, but they are to a large extent They are following Washington's example for Ukraine."

This came in a lecture delivered by Mearsheimer at the European University Institute (EUI) in Florence, Italy, last week, in which he spoke in detail about the causes and repercussions of the war in Ukraine, and was published by the American National Interest magazine. It can be argued that the United States has pushed policies toward Ukraine that Putin and other Russian leaders consider an existential threat, especially America's obsession with including Ukraine into NATO and making it a Western fortress on the Russian border. The Biden administration had no willingness to end this threat diplomatically, and recommitted in 2021 to bring Ukraine into NATO. Putin responded by invading Ukraine on February 24.

In Mearsheimer's words, the Biden administration's response to the outbreak of war was to increase pressure on Russia. Washington and its Western allies are resolutely committed to defeating Russia in Ukraine and using comprehensive sanctions to significantly weaken Russian power. And the United States is not seriously interested in finding a diplomatic solution to the war, which means that the war could last months, if not years.

There is no doubt that Ukraine, which has already suffered seriously, will suffer more damage during the war. There is a risk of an escalation of the war, with NATO likely to be drawn into the fight and the possible use of nuclear weapons. It can be said that we live in perilous times.

The war is likely to have catastrophic repercussions. For example, there is reason to believe that the war will lead to a global food crisis, with the death of many millions of people. World Bank President David Malpass said that if the Ukraine war continued, we would face a global food crisis that would be a "humanitarian catastrophe".

In addition, the relations between Russia and the West have been so poisoned that it will take many years to repair. At the same time, this intense hostility will fuel instability around the world, especially in Europe. Some would say that there is one thing that is positive: relations between the countries of the West have improved significantly due to the Ukraine war.

This may be true for now, but there are cracks deep beneath the surface. For example, relations between Eastern European countries and Western European countries are likely to deteriorate as the war continues because their interests and views on the war are not the same.

To be sure, the war has already mainly damaged the global economy, and this situation is likely to get worse with time.

At the conclusion of his lecture, Mearsheimer said that the current war in Ukraine is clearly a colossal catastrophe, which will cause everyone around the world to search for its causes. Those who believe in facts and logic will quickly discover that the United States and its allies are primarily responsible for this devastation. It was inevitable that the decision issued in April 2008 to annex Ukraine and Georgia to NATO would lead to war with Russia.

Quotes:

I have witnessed this phenomenon twice in my lifetime—first with the Vietnam war and second with the Iraq war. In both cases, Americans wanted to know how their country could have miscalculated so badly. Given that the United States and its NATO allies played a crucial role in the events that led to the Ukraine war—and are now playing a central role in the conduct of that war—it is appropriate to evaluate the West’s responsibility for this calamity.

One might argue that Putin was lying about his motives, that he was attempting to disguise his imperial ambitions. As it turns out, I have written a book about lying in international politics—Why Leaders Lie: The Truth about Lying in International Politics—and it is clear to me that Putin was not lying. For starters, one of my principal findings is that leaders do not lie much to each other; they lie more often to their own publics. Regarding Putin, whatever one thinks of him, he does not have a history of lying to other leaders. Although some assert that he frequently lies and cannot be trusted, there is little evidence of him lying to foreign audiences. Moreover, he has publicly spelled out his thinking about Ukraine on numerous occasions over the past two years and he has consistently emphasized that his principal concern is Ukraine’s relations with the West, especially NATO. He has never once hinted that he wants to make Ukraine part of Russia. If this behavior is all part of a giant deception campaign, it would be without precedent in recorded history.

How is the war in Ukraine being fought?

How is the war in Ukraine being fought?

    Saturday, June 25, 2022   No comments

To understand why the conflict in Ukraine will drag on for years, not months, a look at the tactics used in battles by both sides could help.

Over the past 8 years, Ukrainian forces in the east have worked continuously to establish fighting positions and defensive positions against the forces fighting for autonomy in the east. With Russia now directly involved, on the ground, those tactical measures are falling apart.

Russian forces are using modern technologies to dismantle these military positions. To do that, they are turning to highly mobile units to move quickly, eliminate the threat, and move on to the next target. 

These methods have been used in Syria, and Russia’s experience in that war is being used to fight this war. 

This means that the war will go on for years.

As Russian forces make rapid advances, encircling large enclaves, many Ukrainian fighters surrender

As Russian forces make rapid advances, encircling large enclaves, many Ukrainian fighters surrender

    Friday, June 24, 2022   No comments

The captured fighters of the Armed Forces of Ukraine spoke about the low staffing of the units, the poor provision of the group that ended up in the "Mountain boiler", the flight of the commanders and the lack of communication with them. They call captivity the only chance to stay alive and call on their colleagues for this.

Ukrainian soldiers: “...Our only way to stay alive is to lay down our arms. We were in full view, and if we hadn’t laid down our arms, we would have died.”

 

Video posted on Russia's MoD video showing Ukrainian POWs

      

  Other videos recorded by Ukrainian soldiers:

Message to US: China not hesitate to start war

Message to US: China not hesitate to start war

    Friday, June 17, 2022   No comments

Officials reported that China's defense minister warned his US counterpart Friday that if Taiwan declares independence, Beijing will "not hesitate to start a war."

Wu Qian, the spokesperson of the Information Bureau of the Ministry of National Defense of the People's Republic of China, quoted defense minister Wei Fenghe saying  "If anyone dares to split Taiwan from China, the Chinese army will definitely not hesitate to start a war no matter the cost," during a meeting with Lloyd Austin. 

The meeting is Austin and Wei's first since they spoke on the phone on April 20, which was the first such call since the Biden administration took office.

According to the Chinese defense ministry, the Chinese minister also promised to "smash to smithereens any 'Taiwan independence' plot and resolutely uphold the unification of the motherland."

He stressed that "Taiwan is China's Taiwan... Using Taiwan to contain China will never prevail."

Austin told Fenghe during the talks that Beijing must "refrain from further destabilizing actions toward Taiwan", the US Department of Defense said.  

In related news, China on Friday formally launched its third aircraft carrier during a ceremony marking the landing of the ship at a shipyard in Shanghai, CCTV reported.

Putin: Energy and food problems are the result of the West's wrong policies; All objectives of the Russian military operation in Ukraine will be achieved

Putin: Energy and food problems are the result of the West's wrong policies; All objectives of the Russian military operation in Ukraine will be achieved

    Friday, June 17, 2022   No comments

 Russian President Vladimir Putin stressed today, Friday, that "the world is diverse and one framework cannot be imposed on everyone from one center," adding: "The world is no longer the same as before."

In his speech at the Petersburg International Economic Forum, Putin said that "the United States of America announced that it had won the Cold War and considered itself descended from heaven."

He recalled what he said in Davos a year and a half ago that the "unipolar world has ended" and that there are strenuous attempts to try to restore it, noting that "it is no longer possible to ignore the interests of the new centers of power in the world."

"Outdated geopolitical illusions have undermined confidence in global currencies," Putin said.

The West expected the ruble to collapse, but what happened was the opposite

The Russian president pointed out that "the West's measures to destroy the Russian economy failed and did not bear fruit," explaining that "the reaction of the Russian people came against what the West wanted, as we have increased strength and cohesion."

Putin stressed that "the Russian financial system is stable," noting that "the West expected the ruble to collapse and reach 200 against the dollar, but what happened was the opposite and their expectations were not fulfilled."

"The goal of the sanctions was to bring down the Russian economy, but they did not succeed because the Russian economic sector worked efficiently," he said.

"The Russian people are a strong people who will deal with any problem, and this is evidenced by the thousand-year history of our country," Putin said.

He added that "European politicians have harmed their countries' economies," noting that "the consequences of sanctions imposed on Russia will be $400 billion on European economies."

He stressed that "sanctions can be imposed on any country, including European countries and any European companies."

The European Union has completely lost its sovereignty

During his speech, Putin saw that "the European Union has completely lost its sovereignty, is subject to external dictates, and implements everything that is dictated to it," noting that "inflation growth in some eurozone countries has now exceeded the level of 20%."

Considering that "the world has reached this situation as a result of the activities carried out by the seven major industrialized countries at the level of economy and politics."

There is a danger that Ukrainian wheat will go to finance arms deals

"The Russian military operation in Ukraine was an excuse to hold Russia responsible for all the mistakes," the Russian president said, stressing that "the special military operation in Donbas has nothing to do with the situation in Europe."

He pointed out that "the United States was at the forefront of exporters in the global market, but the US role has now changed."

Putin pointed out that "the West deliberately created a food crisis by buying foodstuffs in world markets above its actual needs," adding that "the United States was the main supplier of many food commodities, and today it has become an importer rather than an exporter."

He revealed that "Russia is interested in exporting 50 million tons of wheat, a priority for needy countries in the countries of the Middle East and Africa," explaining that "the West is pursuing the same old policy of plunder and imperialism, but in a new way."

He added, "Democratic procedures, elections in Europe sometimes look at what's going on there, what forces come to power. It all seems like a screen [to camouflage], because political parties are alike, like twins, superseding each other. However, the The essence of this does not change, the real interests of citizens, national business are being pushed more and more into the backyard, to the fringes.”

He stressed that Russia does not obstruct food exports from Ukraine and that it is not the one who planted mines in the ports, and said in this context, "We will secure the transportation of grain from the ports, but the Ukrainian side should secure the ports from what they planted of sea mines."

Putin warned that "there is a danger that Ukrainian wheat will go to finance arms deals."

Putin: All objectives of the Russian military operation will be achieved

Putin said that "the reason for the energy crisis in Europe lies in the wrong policy of the European Union and the unjustified dependence on alternative energy," stressing that "there was no escape from the decision to launch military currency, as the Donbas residents were subjected to abuse by the Western-backed Ukrainian regime."

Putin added that "all the objectives of the Russian military operation will be achieved," adding that "our soldiers are defending the homeland, the people and human values, and they are resisting extraneous values ​​and moral decay."

He pointed out that "sovereignty in the 21st century is indivisible."

He denounced Western actions, saying: "The West has always been generous in raising the level of hostility against Russia and creating a poisonous atmosphere of Russophobia."

Putin: Russia will not be isolated

Putin pointed out that "the change in the Russian economy and its ability to confront sanctions is what we have made over the past years," noting that "the structure of Western sanctions was based on a false belief that Russia is not a self-sufficient economy."

"The sanctions provide us with a great opportunity and impetus to move forward with regard to technological independence," he said, adding that "Russia will not undergo the process of isolation that the hostile countries thought we would submit to."

He added that "Russia will deal with leaders who want to deal with it, who are able to distinguish between the interests of their countries and foreign dictates."

Putin predicted that "the current situation in Europe will lead to an escalation of radicalism in the future to change the ruling elites," adding that "everyone working with Russia is under unprecedented pressure from the United States and the European Union."

More Chechen fighters are heading for the Donbass region, Ukraine

More Chechen fighters are heading for the Donbass region, Ukraine

    Thursday, May 19, 2022   No comments

More Chechen fighters are flying out of Grozny Akhmat-Khadzhi Kadyrov International Airport heading for the Donbass region, Ukraine.

These are recent graduates of the Russian University of Special Forces in Gudermes.

Chairman of the Parliament of the Chechen Republic Magomed Daudov and Minister of the Interior for the Chechen Republic Ruslan Alkhanov offered parting words.  

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Medvedev warns of 10 catastrophic consequences of sanctions against Russia

Medvedev warns of 10 catastrophic consequences of sanctions against Russia

    Friday, May 13, 2022   No comments

 The deputy head of the Russian National Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, said that the post-sanctions world against Russia will bear a catastrophic 10 points.

This came in a post on his Telegram channel, where he indicated that what will happen is actually reality and "not out of expectations"; a translation of his statement follows:

__________________

What will happen next, or the World after anti-Russian sanctions (not a forecast at all)

1. A number of global supply chains of goods will collapse, a major logistical crisis is possible, including the collapse of the activities of foreign airlines that are prohibited from flying over Russian territory.

2. The energy crisis will intensify in those states that have imposed “shooting their own feet” sanctions on the supply of Russian energy carriers, further growth in fossil fuel prices will continue, and the development of the digital economy in the world will slow down.

3. A full-fledged international food crisis will come with the prospect of starvation in individual states.

4. A monetary and financial crisis is possible in some countries or communities of countries, associated with the undermining of the stability of a number of national currencies, galloping inflation and the destruction of the legal system for protecting private property.

5. New regional military conflicts will arise in those places where the situation has not been peacefully resolved for many years or the significant interests of major international players are ignored.

6. Terrorists are becoming more active, believing that the attention of Western authorities today is diverted to a showdown with Russia.

7. New epidemics will begin, caused by the rejection of honest international cooperation in the sanitary and epidemiological sphere or by direct facts of the use of biological weapons.

8. There will be a decline in the activities of international institutions that have not been able to prove their effectiveness in the course of settling the situation in Ukraine, such as, for example, the Council of Europe.

9. New international alliances of countries based on pragmatic rather than ideological Anglo-Saxon criteria will be formed.

10. As a result, a new security architecture will be created, in which de facto, and then de jure, the existing realities are recognized: 

a) the weakness of Westernized concepts of international relations such as "Order based on rules" and other senseless Western junk; 

b) the collapse of the idea of ​​an American-centric world; and 

c) the presence of interests respected by the world community in those countries that are in an acute stage of conflict with the Western world.

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01:00; FRIDAY THE 13TH of May, 2022.

Macron: Peace will not be achieved in Ukraine by humiliating Russia

Macron: Peace will not be achieved in Ukraine by humiliating Russia

    Monday, May 09, 2022   No comments

The French president stresses that "the European Union is not at war with the Russian side," and stresses that "peace cannot be achieved in Ukraine through the humiliation of Russia."

"The European Union is not at war with Russia," French President Emmanuel Macron said in a speech to the European Parliament in the French city of Strasbourg, on the occasion of Europe's Day.

Macron added during his speech that "the process of Ukraine's admission to the European Union may take years or decades."

He also noted that "the Europeans are working to preserve Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity for the return of peace," saying that "it is up to Ukraine alone to determine the terms of negotiations with the Russian side."

"Peace cannot be achieved in Ukraine by humiliating Russia," Macron said.

"The goal, in the face of Russia's unilateral decision to attack the Ukrainian people, is to end this war as quickly as possible and do everything so that Ukraine can regain control of it," he stressed.

A few days ago, Russian President Vladimir Putin had a phone call with Macron, in which he referred to "the European Union's disregard for the war crimes committed by the Ukrainian forces," while Macron expressed to Putin his "concern about the problem of ensuring global food security, which is the cause of Western sanctions."

Macron also pledged, earlier, during a telephone conversation with his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, to strengthen military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine, in light of the continuation of the Russian military operation in Ukraine.

Indonesia refuses to supply arms to Ukraine

Indonesia refuses to supply arms to Ukraine

    Friday, April 29, 2022   No comments

Indonesian President Joko Widodo has confirmed that he has rejected a request from his Ukrainian counterpart, Vladimir Zelensky, to supply arms to Kyiv.

Widodo said during a virtual press conference held today, Friday, according to CNN Indonesia, that Zelensky asked him to export arms to Ukraine, but that he stressed that Jakarta could not meet this request due to the principles guiding foreign policies.

The Indonesian president explained that Jakarta follows the principle of "free and active politics," adding that the country's constitution does not allow its government to supply arms to other countries.

He said: "I would like to stress that Indonesia may not support other countries by exporting arms to them, in accordance with its foreign policy principles and the constitution."

The Indonesian Constitution stipulates that the state shall refrain from taking the side of any state in any dispute and actively contribute to the political settlement of disputes and disagreements at the international level.

At the same time, Widodo pledged humanitarian aid to Ukraine, stressed the need for an immediate cessation of hostilities on the territory of this country, and expressed Indonesia's readiness to contribute to the peaceful efforts aimed at settling the conflict between Moscow and Kiev.

He invited Indonesian President Zelensky and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to participate in the G-20 summit to be held on the island of Bali next November.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres walks in war zone characterizes the war in Ukraine as “absurd”, could see his own “grandchildren running in terror.”

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres walks in war zone characterizes the war in Ukraine as “absurd”, could see his own “grandchildren running in terror.”

    Thursday, April 28, 2022   No comments

ISR Comment:

To Mr. Guterres: There is another absurd war that is also absurd and was allowed to go on for seven years: The war in Yemen. But perhaps the children of Yemen do not look like your grandchildren, so that is why you cannot relate, you cannot imagine them to be your children; so you don’t visit Yemen’s destroyed cities and watch the children dying of hunger and lack of basis medicine because of the suffocating embargo by a regime that threatened to cut off aid to UN organizations if its crimes against children was reported by any UN agency. Perhaps, if the UN and many Western states spoke forcefully against the many wars in Muslim communities initiated or enabled by the West, the world will be more united and successful in preventing this war. Consistency is an element of justice. The bigotry and discrimination against communities of the Global South will haunt those complicit in all human rights crimes and will destroy the reputation of the UN organization for its failure to support for the poor and vulnerable.

The News:

Guterres - who is on his first visit to Ukraine since the start of the Russian war on the country on February 24 - said in front of destroyed buildings accompanied by soldiers and local officials, "I imagine my family in one of these houses, I see my grandchildren running in terror, the war is absurd in the 21st century, any war that is not acceptable in the 21st century.”

While touring damaged towns outside Kyiv, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres urged Russia to cooperate with war crimes probes. Meanwhile, German lawmakers approved sending heavy weapons to Ukraine. DW has the latest.

Biden proposes using seized Russian oligarch assets to compensate Ukraine

The White House proposed using assets confiscated from Russian oligarchs to compensate Ukraine for damage caused by Russia's invasion of the country.

This would enable "transfer of the proceeds of forfeited kleptocratic property to Ukraine to remediate harms of Russian aggression," the White House said in a statement.

To date, European Union allies have frozen more than $30 billion (€ 28,6 billion) in Russian assets, including almost $7 billion in luxury goods belonging to oligarchs, including yachts, art, real estate and helicopters, the White House said.

The United States has "sanctioned and blocked vessels and aircraft worth over $1 billion (€950 million), as well as frozen hundreds of millions of dollars of assets belonging to Russian elites in US accounts."

...

source: https://www.dw.com/en/un-chief-guterres-decries-absurdity-of-war-in-visit-to-ukraine-live-updates/a-61615670

Putin: Any country or party interfering with what is happening in Ukraine would make Russia "respond harshly"

Putin: Any country or party interfering with what is happening in Ukraine would make Russia "respond harshly"

    Wednesday, April 27, 2022   No comments

On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned any country or party against interfering with what is happening in Ukraine, and stressed that his country would "respond harshly."

This came during Putin's speech before a session of the Council of Legislators of the Russian Federal Assembly, which was held in Petersburg.

"If an outside party tries to interfere in the Ukrainian events, it should know that our strikes will be lightning," he said.

He added that in the event of any threat to Moscow, "it will use means that none of its opponents yet possesses," without further clarification.

In this context, Putin considered that the West has turned neighboring Ukraine into an "enemy country of Russia," and continued, "Ukraine has simply become a consumable item in the war against Russia."

During his speech, Putin reiterated that all the objectives of the planned military operation in Ukraine "will be achieved without a doubt," stressing that it will guarantee the security of Donbass, Crimea and the whole of Russia in the future.

On February 24, Russia launched an attack on Ukraine, followed by international rejection and severe economic and financial sanctions against Moscow, which stipulate to end its operation that Kyiv abandon plans to join military entities and adhere to complete neutrality, which the latter considers an "interference in its sovereignty."