Putin calls for closer ties with Arab states

 

FILE PHOTO. © AP / Sputnik / Kremlin / Sergei Bobylev

Source: RT News

The Middle East and North Africa play an increasingly important role in a “multipolar” world, the Russian leader said

Russian President Vladimir Putin has urged for stronger relations with the Arab League and its member states, proposing closer cooperation in maintaining regional security and in resolving a number of ongoing conflicts from Libya to Yemen.

Addressing the members of the Arab League ahead of the body’s 31st summit in Algiers on Tuesday, Putin said the “formation of a multipolar system of international relations is gaining momentum,” adding that the nations of the Middle East and North Africa, “with a combined population of almost half a billion,” will play an “increasingly significant role in this process.”

“Russia is ready to continue to fully boost ties with the Arab League and all its members, particularly in strengthening regional and global security,” the president continued. “We believe that the military and political issues that the Middle East and North Africa are facing – including the Syrian and Libyan crises and the Yemeni and Israeli-Palestinian conflicts – should be resolved based on universally recognized international laws, with full respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states.”

The Arab League summit kicked off later on Tuesday, with officials from all of the body’s 22 members in attendance besides Syria, which has been suspended from the organization since its civil war began in 2011. Though there was some discussion about allowing Damascus to attend the event in Algiers, Syria’s own foreign minister reportedly suggested the issue be resolved later “for the sake of Arab unity given the challenges posed by current regional and international conditions,” according to Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra.

The regional organization was forced to delay the summit several times due to the Covid-19 pandemic, including in 2020, 2021 and once again earlier this year.

The two-day event is the first Arab League summit since some members signed normalization deals with Israel, moves which have stoked condemnation from other members – namely the Palestinians, who have slammed any improved diplomatic ties as a betrayal of their cause. Algeria, the host of this year’s summit, remains a vocal supporter of the Palestinians.

Among other issues, the league is expected to discuss the Israel-Palestine conflict, ongoing crises in Libya, Yemen and Syria, regional food and energy security, reforms to the league itself, as well as the conflict in Ukraine and its aftermath.
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Britain says response to Syria chemical attack possible without unanimous UN backing

 

Updated: 1:55 PM

 

 

Members of the British Royal Navy frigate HMS Westminster (Reuters / Jon Nazca)

Source: Russia Today

http://rt.com/news/uk-response-without-un-backing-979/

A response to the use of chemical weapons in Syria is possible without the unanimous consent of the UN Security Council, UK Foreign Secretary William Hague has said.

“I would argue yes it is, otherwise it might be impossible to respond to such outrages, such crimes, and I don't think that's an acceptable situation," Hague said on BBC radio, when asked whether it would be possible to respond to the use of chemical weapons without the backing of the UN Security Council.

Meanwhile, Britain’s Royal Navy is reportedly moving ships into place for a possible strike with the US on Syria in the next few days.

Citing government sources, British daily The Telegraph wrote that as military commanders were discussing a list of potential targets, the Royal Navy is deploying vessels for a series of cruise missile strikes on Syria.

Since last week’s chemical weapons attack on a Damascus suburb that left over 300 civilians dead, political rhetoric has been building against President Bashar Assad, alleging the regime carried out the attack against its own citizens. On Sunday, Britain added its voice to the chorus of countries urging for intervention in Syria.

Foreign Secretary William Hague condemned the Assad regime, stating that “all the evidence points in one direction.”

"We cannot, in the 21st century, allow the idea that chemical weapons can be used with impunity, that people can be killed in this way, and there are no consequences for it," he said.

Branding Assad a dictator, Hague stressed a “strong response” was essential in light of the use of chemical weapons to “slaughter” Syrian citizens.

Syrian President Bashar Assad responded to the calls for an international reaction to the chemical attack, warning that any international intervention in Syria would end in failure.

"The comments [accusing the regime of using chemical weapons] made by politicians in the West and other countries are an insult to common sense... It is nonsense," Assad said, adding the accusations were completely “political.”

Russia also urged caution, calling on Washington to avoid “repeating past mistakes.”

“All of this makes one recall the events that happened 10 years ago, when, using false information about Iraqis having weapons of mass destruction, the US bypassed the United Nations and started a scheme whose consequences are well known to everyone,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Moscow has also said a UN investigation into last Wednesday’s attack is of paramount importance and it was essential that its results were not influenced before time.

A team of UN experts arrived at the site of the attack on Monday in the Damascus suburb of Ghouta, however doubts have already been raised over the validity of an investigation.

Washington has already alleged that an investigation would be “too late to be credible.” The British government echoed the US, stating that valuable evidence could have been destroyed in subsequent bombing of the area or tampered with.

"The fact is that much of the evidence could have been destroyed by that artillery bombardment. Other evidence could have degraded over the last few days and other evidence could have been tampered with," Hague told reporters on Saturday.

The toxic gas attack in Ghouta triggered a wave of media hysteria with mixed reports alleging that thousands had been killed. On Saturday, French charity Medcins sans Frontieres (Doctors without Borders) said that 355 people had died and over a thousand were exhibiting systems related to neurotoxic poisoning. However, the non-profit organization said it was impossible to discern who was behind the attack.

--------------------------------------------

Saudi spy chief hails UK role in persistent Syrian civil war

 

 

Source: Press TV

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/08/26/320534/saudi-spy-chief-hails-uk-role-in-syria/

Saudi intelligence chief Prince Bandar Bin Sultan has in a secret meeting briefed Britain’s MI6 chief Sir Robert Sawers on Riyadh’s role in stoking the Syrian civil war and thanked London for its strategic cooperation to that end.

"At the meeting, the Saudi intelligence chief briefed Sawers on Riyadh's latest moves on Syria, including the supply of over 400 tons of weapons to the militants in Syria via Turkey," Fars News Agency quoted unnamed sources as saying.

“We have made the Syrian army engage in a civil war and of course this strategic mission could not be accomplished without your (MI6) cooperation,” the source quoted Prince Bandar as saying during the meeting.

According to the report, the Saudi National Security Council Secretary and Intelligence Chief also reiterated that his country is sending the Salafi and other extremist fighters to Syria to get them killed and trigger religious discord among different Muslims groups in the region.

"The Prince also reminded the different advantages of the Saudi plan in Syria, saying that extremist groups, including the Salafis, have been engaged in the war in Syria and killed in there, while the Lebanese Hezbollah movement has also been pushed into direct confrontation with radical Sunni Muslims," the source said.

Prince Bandar also reportedly ensured Sawers of control over the extremist mercenaries in Syria so that they do not turn up against Saudi Arabia and its western allies.

Lebanon’s Assafir newspaper reported back in June that Prince Bandar has been an intermediary between the western governments and the Syrian militants to deliver heavy weapons to the terrorists.

--------------------------------------

Updated: 2013 August 26, 1:55 PM

 

US cannot afford to wait for UN to attack Syria: Officials

 

 

US President Barack Obama meets with his national security team

 

Source: Press TV

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/08/26/320575/us-cannot-afford-to-wait-for-un-to-attack-syria/

Rep. Eliot Engel (NY), the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, has said “this is time for us” to launch cruise missile strikes on Syria, and that the US government cannot afford to wait for the United Nations.

“The world is a better place when the United States takes leadership; this is time for us to do this. I hope we’ll do it soon,” the American lawmaker said on Fox News Sunday.

A growing number of Republicans and Democrats in Congress are urging President Barack Obama to approve military action against Syria following reports of a deadly chemical attack in the suburbs of Damascus last week.

Engel said that the United States had to respond quickly and could not afford to wait for the United Nations.

“We could even destroy the Syrian Air Force if we wanted to… We have to move and we have to move quickly.”

Other senior US officials have also indicated that instead of seeking a UN approval for military action, Washington could work with its partners such as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) or the Arab League.

"We'll consult with the UN. They're an important avenue. But they're not the only avenue," a senior administration official said.

The Syrian government has allowed UN inspectors to visit a site that allegedly came under chemical attack on Wednesday. Obama administration officials, however, have dismissed as too late the Syrian offer.

Although there is still no evidence to blame the chemical attack on the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a senior administration official said there was “very little doubt” that Damascus was behind the attack.

“Based on the reported number of victims, reported symptoms of those who were killed or injured, witness accounts and other facts gathered by open sources, the US intelligence community, and international partners, there is very little doubt at this point that a chemical weapon was used by the Syrian regime against civilians in this incident,” the unnamed official said in a written statement on Sunday, as reported by the New York Times.

The Syrian government and the army categorically denied any role in Wednesday’s chemical attack which killed hundreds of people. Russia, a key ally of Syria, insists that the attack was "clearly provocative in nature," and that it was staged by foreign-backed militant groups to incriminate the Assad government.

In recent days, the Pentagon has moved more warships into place in the eastern Mediterranean Sea and American war planners have updated strike targets that include government and military installations inside Syria, officials said.

President Obama met with his national security advisers at the White House over the weekend to discuss “a range of options” for Syria, but officials said late Sunday that the president had yet to decide how to proceed.

Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel reiterated Sunday that the Pentagon has prepared “options for all contingencies” and is ready to use force if the president gives the green-light.

Meanwhile, the US top military leader is in Jordan to discuss possible strikes on neighboring Syria.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey was set to meet with his Jordanian counterpart and other regional defense chiefs during his visit.

"The exchange is designed to increase the collective understanding of the impact of regional conflicts on nations, foster ongoing dialogue and improve security relationships," Defense Department spokeswoman Lt. Col. Cathy Wilkinson said.

President Obama said last year that the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government was “a red line” that would provoke a military response

 

 

Russia warns US of extremely dangerous fallout of strike on Syria

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov

Source: Press TV

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/08/26/320519/russia-warns-us-against-attack-on-syria/

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has warned the United States against the ‘extremely dangerous consequences’ of military action against Syria.

Lavrov made the remarks during a telephone conversation with US Secretary of State John Kerry on Sunday.

“Sergei Lavrov drew attention to the extremely dangerous consequences of a possible new military intervention for the whole Middle East and North Africa region,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

It added that Moscow was “deeply alarmed” by Washington’s statement about its readiness to intervene in Syria.

Foreign Minister Lavrov urged restraint during the conversation with John Kerry, the statement said.

US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said on August 23 that the Pentagon was positioning military forces as part of “contingency options” provided to US President Barack Obama regarding Syria.

France and the Israeli regime have also called for military action against the government of President Bashar al-Assad.

Hagel’s comments have been interpreted as a tacit suggestion that the US may be preparing for a military strike on Syria. The US defense secretary repeated similar remarks on Sunday during a visit to Malaysia.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said in a recent interview with the Russian newspaper Izvestia that any military intervention by the US would end in “failure.”

The United Nations says over 100,000 people have been killed and a total of 7.8 million of others displaced due to the turmoil that has gripped Syria since March 2011.


 

Iran warns US against overstepping red line on Syria

 

 

Source: Press TV

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/08/25/320395/dont-cross-syria-redline-iran-warns-us/

Deputy Chairman of Iranian Armed Forces’ Chief of Staff Brigadier General Masoud Jazayeri has warned the United States of the “severe consequences” of crossing the red line on Syria.

“The US knows where the red line of the Syria front is laid; and crossing Syria’s red line in any form will have severe consequences for the White House,” Brigadier General Jazayeri said on Sunday.

The Iranian commander said that the ongoing terrorist war in Syria is masterminded by the US and the reactionary forces in the region against the resistance front, adding that despite the enemy plots, the Syrian government and nation have gained considerable victories thanks to their resistance against this massive aggression.

He said that the Syrian government and nation currently have the upper hand in the imposed terrorist war.

Jazayeri’s remarks came after US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said on August 23 that the Pentagon was positioning military forces as part of “contingency options” provided to US President Barack Obama regarding Syria.

Hagel’s comments have been interpreted as a tacit suggestion that the US may be preparing for a military strike on Syria. The US defense secretary repeated similar remarks on Sunday during a visit to Malaysia.

On August 21, the militants operating inside Syria and the foreign-backed Syrian opposition claimed that hundreds had been killed in a government chemical attack on militant strongholds in the Damascus suburbs of Ain Tarma, Zamalka and Jobar. However, the Syrian government categorically rejected the baseless claims, and announced later that the chemical attack had actually been carried out by the militants themselves as a false flag operation.

Iran’s Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani also on Sunday described as shameful the United States’ warmongering gestures and propaganda against Syria.

Larijani said that the false accusation by the militants that the Syrian government has used chemical weapons in Syria is meant to set the stage for Washington and the Israeli regime to take advantage of the situation to advance their warmongering policies.

Chairman of Iran's Majlis Committee on National Security and Foreign Policy Alaeddin Boroujerdi on August 23 also warned against a foreign military attack on Syria.

“In case of a potential attack, Syria will defend itself with greater unity and power; and Syria’s regional allies will not stand idly by in the face of such a potential attack,” Boroujerdi pointed out.

Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since 2011.

A very large number of the militants operating inside Syria are reportedly foreign nationals.

According to reports, the West and its regional allies - especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey - are supporting the militants inside Syria

-----------------------------

 

UK, US warn Syria of ‘serious response’ over alleged chemical attack

 

 

Source: Press TV

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/08/25/320381/uk-us-toughen-antisyria-rhetoric/

Britain and the US have threatened Syria with a “serious response” over last week’s alleged chemical attack in the Arab country, which they claim was carried out by government forces.

An alleged chemical attack on parts of the Syrian capital Damascus killed hundreds of civilians on Wednesday.

The Syrian government has categorically denied any role in the attack.

However, British Prime Minister David Cameron and the US president Barack Obama said during a 40-minute phone call on Saturday that they are “gravely concerned” about the incident, claiming there are "increasing signs that this was a significant chemical weapons attack carried out by the Syrian regime".

"[Cameron and Obama] reiterated that significant use of chemical weapons would merit a serious response from the international community and both have tasked officials to examine all the options," Cameron’s office said in a statement.

Britain and the US’s fresh anti-Syrian accusations come as a team of the United Nations chemical weapons inspectors are in Syria to investigate chemical weapons use in the country.

Foreign-backed terrorists in Syria claim that government forces carried out a chemical attack in the Damascus suburbs of Ain Tarma, Zamalka and Jobar on August 21, killing 1,300 people.

However, Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Friday that a footage posted online by the terrorists to back their claim, had been posted before the attack took place

----------------------

 

US ready for ‘all contingencies’ in Syria: Pentagon chief

 

 

Source: Press TV

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/08/25/320378/us-ready-for-all-contingencies-in-syria/

US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel has reiterated that the Pentagon has prepared “options for all contingencies” in Syria and is ready to use force if President Barack Obama gives the green-light.

"President Obama has asked the Defense Department to prepare options for all contingencies. We have done that and we are prepared to exercise whatever option -- if he decides to employ one of those options,'' Hagel said Sunday in Malaysia where he was starting a one-week tour of Asia.

He said that the administration was still weighing whether to launch a military offensive against the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad following reports of a chemical weapons attack in the suburbs of Damascus earlier this week.

"There are risks and consequences for any option that would be used or not used - for action or inaction," the Pentagon chief told reporters. "You have to come to the central point of what would be the objective if you are to pursue an action or not pursue an action. So all those assessments are being made."

President Obama met with his national security team at the White House early on Saturday to discuss reports of the chemical attack in Syria and elaborate on a response.

"We have a range of options available, and we are going to act very deliberately so that we're making decisions consistent with our national interest as well as our assessment of what can advance our objectives in Syria," a senior administration official told CNN on condition of anonymity when discussing the options being revised in ongoing White House meetings.

Also on Saturday, Obama called British Prime Minister David Cameron to discuss a potential response to the suspected chemical attack.

Meanwhile, the US Navy is pre-positioning four destroyers in the eastern Mediterranean Sea and is moving its forces closer to Syria in anticipation of a possible order for airstrikes by President Obama.

Obama said last year that the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government would “cross a red line.”

The Syrian opposition accuses government forces of attacking militant strongholds near the capital with a toxic gas on Wednesday. Damascus has rejected the claim as baseless, saying it has proof that the militants were responsible for the attack which killed hundreds of people

----------------------- 

Syrian army finds chemicals in militants tunnels

 

Source: Press TV

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/08/24/320277/chemicals-found-in-syria-militant-tunnels/

Syrian army soldiers have found chemical agents in tunnels dug by the foreign-backed militants in a northeastern suburb of the capital, Damascus, Syrian TV says.

The discovery came after the government forces surrounded a sector of militant-held district of Jobar on Saturday.

"Army heroes are entering the tunnels of the terrorists and saw chemical agents," Syria television said, adding, "In some cases, soldiers are suffocating while entering Jobar.”

It added that ambulances arrived in the region to rescue the people who were suffocating in Jobar and the area is now controlled by Syrian army forces.

The Syrian government also stated that the foreign-backed militants had carried out the recent chemical attack in Damascus suburbs of Ain Tarma, Zamalka and Jobar.

On Wednesday, Syria's opposition claimed that hundreds were killed in a government chemical attack on militants strongholds in Damascus suburbs of Ain Tarma, Zamalka and Jobar before dawn.

The Syrian army has vehemently denied allegations that it used chemical weapons against militants in the suburbs of the Ghouta region, saying the accusations were fabricated to distract the visiting team of UN chemical weapons experts and to cover up militants losses.

Meanwhile, UN Under-Secretary-General Angela Kane arrived in Damascus on Saturday for talks aimed at establishing an investigation into the Wednesday’s attack.

In a related development, Russian Foreign Ministry on Friday accused Syria’s opposition of preventing an objective probe into the alleged attack.

US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, however, said his commanders have prepared a range of options for President Barack Obama if he chooses to go for military action against Syria.

"The Defense Department has a responsibility to provide the president with options for contingencies, and that requires positioning our forces, positioning our assets, to be able to carry out different options - whatever options the president might choose," he said.

 

Foreign war on Syria to threaten entire Middle East security - Iran lawmaker

 

Source: Press TV

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/08/24/320211/attack-on-syria-to-endanger-mideast/

A senior Iranian lawmaker has warned against a foreign military attack on Syria, saying such aggression will threaten the security of the entire Middle East.

“If the West launches a war on Syria, an all-out and uncontrollable war will undoubtedly begin in the region, which will pose a serious threat to the security of the Middle East region; and its final outcome will be harmful to the US and the Zionist regime (Israel),” Chairman of Iran's Majlis Committee on National Security and Foreign Policy Alaeddin Boroujerdi said on Friday.

US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said on Friday that the Pentagon was positioning military forces as part of “contingency options” provided to US President Barack Obama regarding Syria.

“The Defense Department has a responsibility to provide the president with options for all contingencies,” Hagel said. “And that requires positioning our forces, positioning our assets to be able to carry out different options - whatever the president might choose.” The remarks have been interpreted as a tacit suggestion that the US may be preparing for a military attack on Syria.

Reacting to the hawkish remarks by Hagel as well as similar comments by other Western officials, Boroujerdi said that such statements, besides being threats against Syria, will also be challenging the security of the Israeli regime.

The Iranian lawmaker said that a war on Syria would be a repeat of the West’s past mistakes in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Boroujerdi stated that the US and its regional allies have so far made use of their utmost potential and utilized all levers that run counter to human rights, including full support for the terrorists in Syria, to defeat the Syrian government of President Bashar al-Assad.

“In case of a potential attack, Syria will defend itself with greater unity and power; and Syria’s regional allies will not stand idly by in the face of such a potential attack,” Boroujerdi pointed out.

On August 21, the militants in Syria alleged that 1,300 people had been killed in a government chemical attack on militant strongholds in the Damascus suburbs of Ain Tarma, Zamalka and Jobar.

However, the Syrian government vehemently dismissed the claim, saying the new accusations were fabricated to distract a visiting team of UN chemical weapons experts and to cover up militants’ losses.

Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since 2011.

A very large number of the militants operating inside Syria are reportedly foreign nationals.

According to reports, the West and its regional allies - especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey - are supporting the militants inside Syria

 

US raises alert for warships in Middle East

 

USS Abraham Lincoln

Source: Press TV

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/08/05/317362/us-raises-alert-for-warships-in-mideast/

The United States has reportedly ordered its warships in the Middle East to be ready in case of a possible terror attack by al-Qaeda.

DEBKAfile said on Monday that US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel “is reported by CNN to be considering a special deployment of US forces in the Middle East ready for action if a terrorist attack makes it necessary.”

“US warships have been ordered to sail into waters opposite Yemen, which is reported to be the source of the terrorist threat which has closed 19 US embassies and consulates in the Muslim world since Sunday,” DEBKAfile reported.

“Marine units in southern Italy and Spain were also told to stand ready for intervention,” according to the report.

The United States closed 21 embassies and consulates in the Middle East and North Africa on Sunday, warning that al-Qaeda may be planning to conduct attacks by the end of August.

On Sunday, State Department said that the country’s embassies and consulates in 19 cities will remain closed until Saturday. US diplomatic posts will remain closed in Egypt, Jordan, Libya, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait among other countries.

The department also issued a global travel alert due to a possible terror attack by al-Qaeda.

“Current information suggests that al-Qaeda and affiliated organizations continue to plan terrorist attacks both in the region and beyond, and that they may focus efforts to conduct attacks in the period between now and the end of August,” the department said.

In an interview with Press TV, political analyst Dr. Kevin Barrett said that the recent global terror alert shows that Washington needs to keep the so-called war on terror going.

“There is a hidden agenda of course behind it and that is to keep the so-called war on terror going and to do that they need to periodically check and see if people still believe this kind of nonsense,” he said.

“Terror alert issued by the US government is just as ridiculous as previous series of terror alerts,” Barrett added.

 

2013 - What's in Store? (Op-Ed)

 

By: Adrian Salbuchi

Source: Russia Today

http://rt.com/news/2013-global-politics-trends-150/

World Government stepping onto sovereign Nation-States, puppet politicians unable to cope with social challenges, chaos in the Middle East and ever increasing global crises – all this awaits us in 2013. Is it time for ‘We the People’ to wake up?

More violence in the Middle East; increased protests and commotion on the streets of Europe and America; a banking/debt crisis spinning faster and faster out of control with panicky governments running to save the bankers and kill the workers. That’s 2012’s legacy, so… thank God it’s (almost) over!

But – barring the Mayan Prophecies coming true, which is most unlikely – regrettably 2013 threatens us with even darker clouds on its horizon.

­We’re not into “predictions” or futurism, however understanding what really makes this world tick allows rational projections of tendencies on the basis of concrete facts. That can serve to give us an idea of what’s in store for 2013, so we can better prepare for what’s coming our way.

Let’s look at half a dozen Key Issues:

Where’s the pilot?

Glaringly visible on today’s global political stage is that leaders in just about every country are unable to tackle and solve the overwhelming swarm of growing crises and challenges affecting society; at least not in the West. Whether it’s political, social or military conflict; increasing ecological threats; on-going financial and economic collapse; mass cultural and intellectual dumbing-down; or obscene government corruption, everywhere you look things seem to be taking a turn for the worse.

Even the leaders of powerful countries as the United States, Britain and the European Union fail dismally when addressing these crises highlighting their mediocrity, lack of vision and creativity. This becomes more obvious when comparing today’s leaders with those of yesteryear.

Take France, for instance: having given the world a true statesman like Charles de Gaulle, today they’re run by political midgets like Hollande and Sarkozy. Worse still is the US, which had a great president like John F Kennedy but today is misgoverned by puppets like Bush junior and Obama. Even Britain, Italy and Germany once led by inspirational figures like Churchill, De Gaspari and Adenauer, today can only muster grey mediocrities like Blair, Cameron, Berlusconi, Monti or Merkel.

Is it all just coincidence, or does it reflect a monolithic political system that ensures that not the best and brightest, but the worst and dimmest rise to become presidents and prime ministers?

Is this the result of the Global Power Masters’ preferred system of control over entire nations through “money-powered democracy”? This is in stark contrast with what “We the People” are clamouring for in every country. In fact, “We the People” have instinct and are neither stupid nor cowardly. Unfortunately though, their political leaders for the most part are.

Is there a “superior will” making sure that growing national problems remain unresolved, and get worse and worse as presidents and prime ministers come and go?

Is it just “bad financial judgment” that’s made all national debts with the Mega-banker Over-world balloon way out of control? Just bad luck that pension funds are massively broke and health systems are in shambles?

Just bad luck that; Orwell-like, peace-making has turned into warmongering?

Is it just bad luck that basic human decency, ethics and solidarity are scorned by that moral cesspool known as the “entertainment industry”, which is the prime driver or the dumbing-down of populations everywhere?

We don’t think so…

Is all of this a way of telling the world in no uncertain terms just who’s really in charge, by “proving” that Sovereign Nation-States can no longer cope, and “a thing of the past” to be thrown into the dustbin of history? That certainly ties in with the Global Power Masters’ fundamental long-term objective geared on dissolving the nations of the world so their power can be sucked up into the coming World Government organisations?

But look again: it’s not Nation-States that are failing, but rather the “democratically elected” politicians who run them! Let’s not thrown the baby away with the bath water…!

World Government needs to do away with sovereign Nation-States because they’re the only social institution that can hold the Global Corporate and Mega-banker Over-world in check. In fact, the Sovereign Nation-State is the Over-world’s Public Enemy No. 1!

Back in 1974, the Elite think-tank Council on Foreign Relation’s journal “Foreign Affairs” suggested that “the house of world order will have to be built from the bottom up… It will look like a great "booming, buzzing confusion," …but an end run around national sovereignty, eroding it piece by piece, will accomplish much more than the old-fashioned frontal assault.” That was written over 38 years ago… Now that’s what I call long-range planning!

So, get ready: 2013 will bring ever increasing crises as all Nation-States are weakened more and more. In Orwellian newspeak, this is “democracy”. However, “We the People” are waking up to the fact that such a “democracy” is nothing but a prison of the mind.

In 2013 more people will be asking themselves “Where’s the pilot?” They will want to know who’s really running this ghastly global show. You can bet your bottom dollar that “the pilot” is definitely not in the White House, or the Palais d'Elysee, or 10 Downing Street. Clearly, we need new pilots!

United States of America

Had Republican candidate Mitt Romney won November’s presidential elections, today we’d be in global doldrums on a range of important issues. The Global Power Masters would have had to wait until Romney is inaugurated in late January 2013, and then give him the privileged “100 days’ honeymoon” as new White House tenant, before they actually began pressing and coaxing him to do their bidding. That would have given the world four, maybe five, months’ respite.

However, Romney lost the elections, and Barack Obama will be president four more years. No waiting; no honeymoon.

Time is of the essence and Big Brother Bwana is already shouting orders at Boy Obama demanding him to move… and fast! The Big Bosses in AIPAC, Wall Street, Tel-Aviv, Goldman Sachs, the FED, JPMorganChase, and the Lodges have lots of plans for the US… Obama had been dragging his feet on certain issues: Time to act!

But one may even wonder whether Obama’s staying “at the helm” might be so he oversees “Mission Transformation”: the controlled collapse of the US. Will Obama turn out to be America’s Mikhail Gorbachev?

Over a decade ago, Russian Ministry of Foreign Relations academic Igor Panarin pointed to the coming dismemberment of the US due to growing internal political, social and cultural centrifugal forces, overcoming the increasingly weak centripetal forces holding America together.

Right now, we see secessionist movements in just about every state in the US. Texas, North & South Carolina, Georgia, Louisiana, Florida, Missouri, Tennessee, Alabama, Oklahoma and Ohio have gathered the 25,000 petition signatures needed to make it mandatory for the Federal Government to address their request.

By the end of the 1980’s, the 'Powers That Be' decided it was time for “Globalisation” to go into full gear: a chaotic, horizontal, transitory and transitional process that has greatly weakened national sovereignties. But they needed to liquidate the then formidable Union of Soviet Socialist Republics that was getting in their way. That was Mikhail Gorbachev’s job and he certainly played his role magnificently even if power brokers in New York and London like him far more than citizens in Moscow or St Petersburg.

Now the Global Power Masters are wrapping up “Globalisation” and moving on towards something far more ambitious: outright World Government which, contrary to globalisation, will be vertical, authoritarian, disciplined and highly centralised. To achieve this new stage, they now need for the other superpower nation-state to go into the waste bin of history. Soon they won’t need a powerful America.

In fact, a powerful US is a potential danger to them because, whilst so far their trillions have ensured the White House always stays in "friendly hands” – Reagan, Bush Senior, Clinton, Bush junior, Obama – can you imagine what would happen if a True Patriot were to make it to the Oval Office? Someone who would say “Enough with the FED!”, “Enough with unrestricted and irrational support for Israel!”, “Enough engineering chaos in Libya, Afghanistan, Mali, Syria, Egypt, Latin America!”

So – yes! – Perhaps our American Gorbachev’s true mission is to kick-off the controlled demise of the US.

War and more war in the Middle East

From the Global Master’s viewpoint, the more chaos the better. The more Libya’s and Syria’s, the better; and the more Egypt-style social chaos, the better; all massively fed by their multimedia PsyWar. Why? Because, irrespective of whether things turn out “well” or “not so well” for them in Palestine, Syria, Iran or Egypt, they always make headway on one permanent overriding objective: weakening Nation-States. In addition, this all ties in with a key Fundamentalist Zionism goal in the region: the destruction of Iran.

In addition, all this “experience” renders useful lessons, knowledge, “case studies” and rules of engagement for designing future “Springs” in Latin America, Africa, Asia, Europe, even the US.

Stay tuned: this may be coming in 2013 to a country near you.

Israel’s bad temper

As we all know when Israel gets up in a bad mood, they cheer up by going into Palestinian-bashing mode, knowing Big Brother Homer will look the other way. That just occurred in Gaza, as it did in 2009; as it did in Southern Lebanon in 2006.

Now we’ll see a lull as Benjamin Netanyahu campaigns for re-election in January 2013, which may be why he’s pushed aside his embarrassing extreme right-wing ally and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman. This may be linked to trying to accommodate – not Obama – but the American military, which is growing increasingly weary of America’s imperial overdrive and resource stretch, as a consequence of fighting too many of Israel’s proxy wars.

John Kerry and Chuck Nagel will probably become Obama´s new secretaries of State and Defence. Both are friendly towards Israel, however not irrationally fanatic, which is what Israel and AIPAC demand. This explains the Jerusalem Post’s 17th December article pointing out that both are “hardly Israel’s preferred choices”.

Fiscal cliff

Like the naked Emperor that no one dared to point that interesting fact out to him, the truth is that the American Emperor is nakedly broke, as is the UK. Now, when weak countries like Argentina, México, Thailand or Iceland collapse, they painfully discover that their local currencies (or lack thereof in the cases of Greece, Spain, Italy and Ireland) are backed by nothing. That’s when chaos marches in and the locals suffer all sorts of dreadful economic and social hardship, as seen on TV decade after decade.

When the US, UK or EU go broke, however, they still have an ace up their sleeves: their currencies – Dollar, Pound or Euro – are backed by their formidable, powerful and hugely expensive military forces. In practice, those currencies are backed by supersonic stealth bombers, drones, aircraft carriers, Tomahawks, Blackhawks and public (and private!) armies of highly trained and vicious troops.

But if worse comes to worse, they can always tap into their “Final Solution”; their “Samson Option” so to speak: unleash World War Three in which case who’ll care about the collapse of the Dollar, or the banks, or social upheavals even in New York or London.

World War Three means forcefully fleeing forwards. The Global Power Masters know this only too well: “we pulled this off with the first and second world wars… and it worked!” they seem to say.

Might this be one of 2013’s wild cards?

Watch out with Russia and China

Particularly now that Vladimir Putin is really back in town, Russia is clearly showing that it’s not for turning its back on traditional ally Syria; even less on Iran.
Not so much out of principle, but for defence and survival. If Syria and Iran fall to the US/UK/Israeli hegemon, who do you think is next? And those NATO missiles in Poland, what are they there for?

China, in turn, just named Xi Jinping as new Communist Party Secretary General and soon-to be President. Depending on a wide array of interests and goals, China shrewdly works together with Russia, Iran, India, Latin America or Africa; even with historical foe, Japan.

The Chinese know what they want and need in the medium and long terms. Maybe that’s why they seem paradoxical and difficult to fathom to us short-term thinking Westerners.

Long terms planners at the Pentagon and Western think-tanks, however, know this and they’re preparing for war. So, 2013 will see Russia, China, Iran, India, Pakistan, Brazil, South Africa move closer together to tackle common goals and confront common threats.

As the Western geopolitical serpent tries to tighten its hold on planet Earth, time is not on their side: key Castles and Bishops will move on the Global Grand Chessboard. Watch China and Russia….

Adrian Salbuchi for RT

Lebanese Army imposes ceasefire between rival Tripoli factions

Lebanese army tanks deploy in the Bab al-Tabbaneh and Jabal Mohsen neighborhoods where clashes are taking place between Sunni and Alawites in the coastal city of Tripoli, northern Lebanon, on October 23, 2012. (AFP Photo/Joseph Eid)

Source: Russia Today

The Lebanese Army has deployed soldiers to Tripoli, claiming a ceasefire has been arranged there following three days of deadly fighting between Sunni and Alawite gunmen. Both claim loyalty to different sides in the Syrian civil conflict.

­The army says an agreement for a ceasefire was reached between rivaling factions in the city.

"The army will restore security, and we urge Tripoli's residents to fully comply with security forces and deal with things wisely, because security forces will start erecting checkpoints in Tripoli and staging patrols to arrest anyone who disrupts security," read a statement issued Tuesday.

The Army Command announced on Tuesday that its units had arrested about 100 gunmen, including 34 Syrians and four Palestinians, in security sweeps in Beirut and Tripoli. Fifteen troops, including two officers, were wounded during the raid, the statement added.

Soldiers also seized weapons while raiding properties in Beirut and Tripoli where gunmen were staying. Army units continue to raid the “hideouts” in order to restore calm in the two cities, the announcement said.

The army is implementing a security plan laid out by the Command to suppress violence on the streets.

The rival districts have been gripped by frequent fighting between pro- and anti-Assad militias as tensions spilled over the border from Syria.

The Sunday fighting in Tripoli involved the neighboring areas of northern city Bab al-Tabbaneh, a Sunni Muslim stronghold that supports the Syrian opposition, and Jebel Mohsen, an Alawite district that backs Assad government.

Security is the main concern in recent days, as the country was hit by violent attacks and riots triggered by the assassination of Lebanese security official Wissam al-Hassan in central Beirut on Friday.

The powerful car bombing claimed the lives of the official and his bodyguard, along with others, and wounded more than 100 people.

The assassination also sparked mass disturbance among Prime Minister Najib Mikati's opposition as people suspect he played a role in the high-profile killing. Mikati is a Sunni Muslim who earlier had personal ties with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, while his cabinet includes many politicians close to Damascus.

AFP Photo/Joseph Eid

AFP Photo/Joseph Eid

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US says it wants Lebanese to elect new government

US State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland (file photo)

Source: Press TV

The United States says it wants a new government in Lebanon after last week's deadly bombing in Beirut created a political turmoil in the Middle Eastern country.

US State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland said in Washington on Tuesday that the Lebanese need to elect leaders who will be able to deal with what she calls the threat of a spillover from the Syrian crisis.

"We support the efforts of President (Michel) Sleiman and other responsible leaders in Lebanon to build an effective government and to take the necessary next steps in the wake of the October 19th terrorist attack," she said.

"President Sleiman is engaged in discussions with all parties to form a new government. We support that process,” Nuland added. "In the interim, we don't want to see a vacuum.”

"The export of instability from Syria threatens the security of Lebanon now more than ever, and it's really up to the Lebanese people to choose a government that is going to counter this threat," she stated.

On October 19, a car bomb blast in Beirut's eastern Ashrafiya district killed at least eight people and injured scores of others. The intelligence chief of Lebanon's Internal Security Forces, General Wissam al-Hassan, was also among those killed in the blast.

The blast was the first major bomb attack in Beirut since 2008. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said the government was trying to identify the perpetrators and that they would be punished.

US fabricates lies on Iran to sell arms to Persian Gulf states: US Daily

A US aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf (file photo)

Source: Press TV

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2012/08/09/255348/us-fabricates-iran-threat-to-sell-arms/

The United States uses the pretext of the ‘Iran threat’ to sell massive amounts of arms to Persian Gulf kingdoms in a failed effort to establish a united alliance among the dictatorships in the oil-rich region.

The US and its Arab allies in the Persian Gulf are attempting to knit together a “missile shield” system through billions of dollars worth of American arms purchases by the US-backed Persian Gulf states in a supposed bid to bring added pressure on the Islamic Republic besides the US-led sanctions scheme, the New York Times reports on Thursday.

That would include, according to the report, the deployment of radars to boost the range of early warning coverage across the Persian Gulf, as well as launching command, control and communications systems that could exchange that information with missile interceptors whose triggers are controlled by individual countries.

To meet the objective, Pentagon announced late last year the sale of two advanced missile defense radars to the United Arab Emirates (UAE). In addition, a similar high-resolution, X-band missile defense radar was sold to Qatar earlier this year.

Moreover, three weeks ago, the US Defense Department revealed the newest addition to its Persian Gulf missile system, notifying the US Congress of a plan to sell Kuwait $4.2 billion worth of weaponry that would include 60 Patriot Advanced Capability missiles, 20 launching pads and 4 radars. All this would come in addition to Kuwait’s existing arsenal of 350 Patriot missiles purchased between 2007 and 2010.

Citing Pentagon documents, the report also reveals that the UAE has purchased over $12 billion worth of missile systems in the past four years.

Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, notorious for its persistent purchase of massive weapon systems from the US and Europe, has also acquired a significant arsenal of Patriot systems, the most recent being $1.7 billion worth of upgrades last year.

Despite the purchase of such massive amounts of weapon systems, the report says, it is the US military forces that provide a core capability for ballistic missile systems in the Persian Gulf.

Yet, the US is facing major technological and political challenges in establishing what it boasts as being an “integrated regional missile defense system.”

Technologically, they admit, no missile defense system can promise 100 percent effectiveness. Additionally, the Americans argue, Iran is increasing both the type and number of its own missiles in the field.

Political challenges for the Americans, says the report, stem from historic rivalries that prompt its Persian Gulf allies to enhance their respective security through bilateral ties with the US, resisting multilateral security arrangements among themselves.

Iranian officials have repeatedly announced that the Persian Gulf security can best be preserved through a regional collaboration rather than the interference of foreign powers.

US hails Turkey’s support for NATO’

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu (L) and US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta in Washington on February 13, 2012

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/226904.html

The US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta has reportedly thanked Turkey for its ongoing support for the Western military alliance of NATO.

US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs, George Little announced that in a meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in Washington on February 13, Panetta expressed his gratitude for Turkey’s contribution to a planned NATO missile system by hosting the system’s US-made radar in the country earlier in the year.

Davutoglu was in Washington from February 8 to 13 at the US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s invitation to meet with administration officials and congressional leaders.

Little added that recent developments in Syria, Afghanistan, and security issues of common interest were also discussed during the meeting.

Turkey has hosted the radar in the Kurecik district of the eastern province of Malatya.

Russia has criticized the plan and denounced the military alliance's efforts to advance eastwards.

The Russian Foreign Ministry says Turkey's collaboration with NATO would mark another step in the direction of the deployment of ‘the European segment’ of a global US missile system.

It says the NATO missile system does not provide security for Washington's European allies and is effectively aimed at Russia.

Egypt parliament gets legislative powers

Mohamed Saad al-Katatni of the Muslim Brotherhood speaks to other members of the Egyptian parliament during the first session after the revolution that ousted former dictator Hosni Mubarak, Cairo, January 23, 2012

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/222766.html

Egypt's military rulers, who took over the reins after a revolution ousted former Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak, have handed legislative powers to the country's parliament.

“Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, the head of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, has announced in a letter to the people's assembly the transfer of legislative power to the assembly," the cabinet said in statement on Monday.

The lower house of parliament convened for the first time on Monday, two days before the first anniversary of the start of the revolution, which began on January 25 and culminated on February 11 with Mubarak's ouster.

During the marathon parliamentary elections, which ended just days ago, Egypt's two main Islamic parties secured over three quarters of the 498 seats.

The Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) secured the biggest share of seats (47.18) in the parliament while the Islamic al-Nour party finished second with 29 percent of the seats.

During the Monday session, the parliament also elected the FJP's nominee, Mohamed Saad al-Katatni, as speaker of the house.

Egyptian parliament speaker elected

Saad al-Katatni has been elected as speaker of the Egyptian parliament.(File Photo

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/222670.html

The Muslim Brotherhood's Saad al-Katatni has been elected as speaker of the first post-revolution parliament in Egypt.

On Monday, Katatni won 399 votes out of 496 in the first session of the lower assembly, held two days before the first anniversary of the Egyptian revolution.

With 47.18 percent, Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), the political wing of Muslim Brotherhood, the biggest political party in the country, secured the biggest share of seats in the recently-concluded general elections.

The country's new parliament will also elect a 100-strong body with the task of drafting a new constitution.

The party, which was officially banned under Mubarak's authoritarian rule, has pledged to guide Egypt on the path towards the transition of power to a civilian government.

Over the past months protesters have been staging mass demonstrations, calling on the ruling Supreme Council of Armed Forces to hand over power to a civilian authority, accusing it of moving against the country's revolution by using violence against civilians.

SCAF took over after the ouster of the former Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak in a popular revolution in January 2011.

Egypt's new parliament to hold first session

An Egyptian man takes pictures inside the parliament's meeting hall in the country's capital Cairo on January 22, 2012.

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/222560.html

Egypt's new parliament is preparing to meet for its first session since the country's popular revolution ousted former dictator Hosni Mubarak in February.

The opening session will be held on Monday, two days before the first anniversary of the start of the revolution that began on January 25, 2011 and culminated on February 11 with Mubarak's resignation.

Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), the political wing of Muslim Brotherhood, the biggest political party in the country, has secured the biggest share of seats, 47.18, in the recently-concluded general elections. The party, which was officially banned under Mubarak's authoritarian rule, has pledged to guide Egypt in the path towards transition of power to a civilian government.

"It will be a historical session in Egypt's transition to democracy and civilian rule," Mohamed Beltagy, a leading member of the FJP, said before the session, due to begin at 11:00 a.m. local time (0900 GMT).

In Monday's session, the parliament is likely to elect the FJP's nominee, Mohamed el-Katatni, as speaker of the legislature.

The Islamic al-Nour party finished second in the polls with 29 percent of the seats.

The country's new parliament will also elect a 100-strong body with the task of drafting a new constitution.

Egypt's MB wins majority of parliament seats

Egyptians voting in the country's elections which began in November. (File photo)

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/222331.html

Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party has won 47.18 percent of seats in the country's parliamentary elections, officials say.

According to the chairman of election's judicial commission, the Muslim Brotherhood won 235 seats in the new People's Assembly.

The Islamic al-Nour party came in second with 29 percent of the seats.

The country's new parliament is to select a 100-strong body with the task of drafting a new constitution.

Tension heightens between Marshal Tantawi, head of Egypt's ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) and revolutionary forces ahead of 25 January revolution's anniversary as many Egyptians are calling for the downfall of the junta.

Egyptians have in recent weeks staged mass demonstrations against the military rulers.

Protesters have been calling on the SCAF to hand over power to a civilian authority, accusing it of moving against the country's revolution by using violence against civilians.

The ruling Supreme Council of Armed Forces took over after the ouster of the former Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak in a popular revolution in February.