French gas stations hit by blockades, PM says reserves enough to cope. NSA Gitmo Link Reveals Entire Intelligence Community Corrupted. Get short URL WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Revelations that National Security Agency (NSA) officials took part in interrogations at the detention center at Guantanamo Bay indicated that the entire US intelligence apparatus was involved in illegal practices, ex-Judge Advocate General lawyer Todd Pierce told Sputnik.
"This shows that our entire intelligence community with no exceptions corrupted itself with illegal activity," Pierce, a historian and expert on military law said on Thursday. According to internal NSA Signals Intelligence Directorate documents released by former NSA contractor and whistleblower Edward Snowden this week, NSA personnel participated with US military and Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) interrogators at the Guantanamo Bay detention center.
Washington's Two Key Allies in Asia Doubt US Commitment to Their Security. Asia & Pacific Get short URL Japan, South Korea and Taiwan "increasingly fret that the US, which has protected them for decades under a nuclear umbrella, may become a less reliable ally," he noted in an article for Politico. © Sputnik/ : Alexander Vilf Some in Tokyo and Seoul have apparently contemplated opting for a measure of last resort when it comes to security — acquiring nuclear weapons as a means to deter potential North Korean aggression.
This idea, even if marginal, marks a major departure for Japan, a country that has forsworn nuclear weapons following the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during WWII. "With the perfect right to collective self-defense, we should debate whether our troops can completely cover the needs of our own country," Matsui told reporters. In 2011, Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara urged Japanese authorities to develop nuclear weapons.
These Six Facts Expose the American Military’s Coming Collapse. Get short URL According to The National Interest, the gradual decrease in military spending by a whopping 25 percent over the last five years has led to erosion of the American armed forces.
The news outlet made a chart of six top revelations by military authorities that point to the horrifying scale of problems the nation’s army is now facing. Marine Corps’ Aircraft Grounded in Droves The US Marine Corps revealed that two-thirds of the branch’s 276 F/A-18 Hornet strike jets had been grounded because of a lack of financing and equipment weariness. ‘Biblically wrong’: Oklahoma lawmakers urge Obama’s impeachment over transgender bathrooms — RT America. Lawmakers in Oklahoma have introduced legislation calling for President Barack Obama to be impeached because of his administration’s support for transgender bathrooms.
Another bill calls for a declaration of emergency in the state. In a measure called Senate Concurrent Resolution 43, Oklahoma lawmakers accused the Obama administration of overreaching its authority by issuing a directive last week stating that US schools risk losing federal funding if they don’t allow transgender students to use the bathroom of their choice. ‘Extend American power’: Foreign policy establishment doubles down — RT America.
The new generation of Americans needs to be taught that US hegemony is “vital” to their well-being and global peace, and that it must be extended if world order is to be sustained, says a report by a bipartisan group of foreign policy veterans in Washington.
A working group at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) published a 20-page pamphlet this week, articulating their vision for the next president’s foreign policy. The think-tank was established in 2007, and has worked closely with the Obama administration ever since. Titled “Extending American Power: Strategies to Expand US Engagement in a Competitive World Order,” the report is the culmination of a year-long effort.
The project was co-chaired by Dr. Robert Kagan of the Brooking Institution and James Rubin, former Assistant Secretary of State during the Clinton administration and currently a senior adviser at CNAS. Read more Ukraine, Russia and Brexit ISIS, Syria and Iran. ‘OK, I’m dead’: Two Georgia sheriffs taser handcuffed man to death in shocking video — RT America. Does the US Seek Peace in Syria or to Divide Syria Into Pieces. Loud & Clear Get short URL Russia and the United States chaired a meeting of the International Syria Support Group in Vienna yesterday but is the US planning the permanent division of Syria as part of it's so-called Plan B?
NATO military exercises kicked off in Poland yesterday involving more than 1,500 troops. Here's the Most Dangerous Thing About US Missile Defense in Eastern Europe. NATO officials' explanations aside, everyone, including the Russian president, seems to understand perfectly well that the US's shiny new Aegis Ashore missile defense system in Deveselu, Romania, and the one being built in Redzikowo, Poland are directed against Russia.
And the reason, writes Il Manifesto military analyst Manlio Dinucci, is not because the system threatens to intercept Russian ICBMs and put the nuclear balance of power in jeopardy. "The reality," he writes, "is much worse. " © Sputnik/ Alexander Vilf. Eyes South-East! Why the Heads of Asian States Come to See Putin in Sochi. President Putin is hosting a large-scale foreign policy event in the Russian city of Sochi.
The heads of ten Southeast Asian states, members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN are gathering for a two-day Summit to discuss further partnerships and to seek ways to boost their cooperation to a “fundamentally new strategic level.” It is the third high-level meeting between Russia and ASEAN and the first to be held on its territory.
The first one was help in December 2005 in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) and the second – in October 2010 in Hanoi (Vietnam). © Sputnik/ Vladimir Baranov. US General Fears Russia Can Block NATO From Entering Baltic Sea. Military & Intelligence Get short URL NATO troops would not be able to do anything to prevent the Russian Baltic Fleet from blocking the Baltic Sea and cutting off the three Baltic states — Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania — from the rest of the military alliance.
Russian Su-27 Fighter Aircraft Can Destroy Three New US F-35s. Military & Intelligence Get short URL In light of that, analyst Bill French wrote a report titled “Thunder without lightning: high cost and limited benefit development program of F-35,” reviewing the new aircraft.
The document states that according to the technical parameters the F-35 is “losing to the fourth-generation fighter MiG-29 and Su-27, developed by the Russian Air Force and used around the world.” The Soviet MiG-29 and Su-27 fighter aircraft are superior in technical performance than the new US fighter aircraft F-35. The conclusion was reached by the American analyst Bill French, working for a non-profit organization National Security Network. “The F-35 is significantly inferior to the Russian Su-27 and MiG-29 in regard to wing loading (exception — F35C), acceleration and thrust-weight ratio (the ratio of thrust to weight of the aircraft),” said the analyst. Break the Silence About Crimea, Italian MP Says, Demanding End to Sanctions.
Russia Get short URL © Sputnik/ Vladimir Sergeev In an interview with Sputnik, lawmaker Stefano Valdegamberi of Italy's Veneto region, called for Crimea to be recognized by Europe as part of Russia, adding that the time has come to lift anti-Russian sanctions. Valdegamberi is the author of a resolution on the recognition of Crimea, which is most likely to be approved by the Regional Council of Veneto during the May 18 vote.
Poles Fume Over Bill Clinton's Remarks About Poland's 'Putin-Like Leaders' Politics Get short URL On Friday, while campaigning for his wife Hillary ahead of the New Jersey primary at the College of New Jersey, Clinton recalled the US's pivotal role in liberating Eastern Europe from Soviet-style communism, and blasted Poland and Hungary for their 'Putin-like' leaders. In Bed With the Enemy: Foreign Leaders CIA Helped Bring to Power. Politics Get short URL Other prime cases in point include Iran and Guatemala. Rioters armed with staves shout slogans, during riots in Tehran, August 1953. The 1953 Iranian coup. China says US report hypes up its so-called military threat.
Updated 10:28 pm, Saturday, May 14, 2016 FILE - In this May 6, 2016, file photo, soldiers from the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy watch as the USS Blue Ridge arrives at a port in Shanghai. Seeking to calm escalating tensions in the South China Sea, top generals from China and the U.S. spoke by phone Thursday, May 12, 2016, and said they were ready to work out an effective mechanism to prevent confrontation and maintain stability in the region. less. BBC shrugs off Kiev's demand to say 'Russian aggression' instead of 'civil war' Ukrainian MPs have urged the BBC to stop distorting reality and say “Russian aggression” instead of “civil war” when describing the conflict in the country. The BBC rejected the claim, reserving right to use various terms to “objectively” cover the events.
In a letter to the British Broadcasting Corporation, Ukrainian MPs called on the BBC to make changes in the way it covers news in eastern Ukraine and exclude the phrase “civil war” from their reports on the crisis in the country. On Friday politician Svitlana Zalishchuk from the Subcommittee on Euro-Atlantic Cooperation and European Integration Committee on Foreign Affairs posted a copy of the letter addressed to BBC’s Non-Executive Director, Director-General and Chairwoman of BBC Trust on Facebook. The request came after BBC showcased a film called “The Conspiracy Files: Who shot down MH17” on May 3 addressing the cause of the crash of the Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 in July 2014 in Ukraine. 60 more days of emergency in Venezuela as president fears US plots. ‘Coup & farce’: Brazil’s Rousseff vows to fight impeachment with all legal means. Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has promised to use all legal means to fight a “fraudulent” impeachment process, stating that when an elected leader is hunted over accusations of a crime they did not commit the proper term for it would be a “coup.”
“I may have made mistakes, but I didn’t commit any crime,” Rousseff said in front of a group of her supporters near the Planalto presidential palace in capital Brasilia. “It’s the most brutal of things that can happen to a human being – to be condemned for a crime you didn’t commit. Head of TSA addresses retaliation against whistleblowers, long lines at airports — RT America. Brazil’s Dilma Faces Coup: ‘Say Goodbye to BRICS, Say Hello to Washington’
On Wednesday, the Brazilian Senate will vote on whether to suspend elected Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff for 180 days, pending an impeachment trial. The proceedings have been dismissed by Brazilian and international analysts as a political coup intended to implant a pro-business government and implement unpopular austerity measures. Many believed the proceedings had stalled earlier this week when, in a surprise announcement, acting speaker of the Brazilian congress, Waldir Maranhao, announced an annulment of the April 17 vote to recommend impeachment proceedings to the Brazilian Senate. Less than 24 hours later, the President of the Brazilian Senate, Renan Calheiros, denounced Maranhao’s call to annul the earlier vote, arguing that the Congress had already abdicated authority to the Senate. Most corrupt nations on Earth back Cameron’s awkward graft push.
LONDON — When U.K. After Obama: The Logic Behind US Foreign Policy, and Why It May Soon Change. © REUTERS/ Jonathan Ernst In his analysis for the independent foreign affairs analysis website Voltaire Network, Meyssan, the website's founder, suggests that the traditional idea of a passionate ideological struggle between isolationists and interventionists has nearly lost its meaning. Survey shows plunging public support for TTIP in U.S. and Germany. NATO's New Commander Gets Off on the Wrong Foot With Russia. Scaparrotti, handpicked by President Barack Obama to lead the North Atlantic Alliance, singled out Russia as the first of four threats to US and NATO security interests in his written testimony to the US Senate Armed Services Committee.
The other three comprise terrorism, migrant and refugee flows, as well as "the collective threats to Israel. " Middle East Leaders Give Up on Obama, Turn to Putin - US Diplomat. Protests erupt in Athens as parliament adopts new austerity measures. Greek MPs have voted in favor of new austerity measures, including pension cuts, tax hikes, and new taxes on internet and TV. US-led France ignored reality in Syria, harmed itself with Russia sanctions – frmr French intel boss. The French government ignored its own intelligence in dealing with crises in Ukraine and Syria, and recklessly followed Washington’s lead by joining anti-Russian sanctions, dealing a huge blow to its agriculture, said a former French intelligence boss.
Alain Juillet, former deputy director of intelligence at France’s General Directorate for External Security, accused French authorities of making a range of poor foreign policy choices, such as its pro-rebel stance in the Syrian crisis and anti-Russian response to the Ukrainian turmoil, which he says have proven detrimental to French citizens. Read more “The French were certainly wrong on Syria and Ukraine,” Juillet told Paris Match on Thursday, while citing two possible reasons for the authorities’ policy blunders. Uk.businessinsider. Story. OTTAWA — New video footage showing Canadian soldiers wearing the Kurdish flag on their uniforms has raised fresh questions about Canada’s mission in northern Iraq and the message it is sending the rest of the country. Sack your workers and stop asking for bailout – Okupe charges Governors – Daily Post Nigeria.
Doyin Okupe. Uk.businessinsider. Washington's Key Ally Wants to Be Friends With Russia. Failed US Foreign Fighter Training Could Out-Scandalize the Panama Papers. FBI Chooses Secrecy Over Locking Up Criminals. U.S. Foreign Surveillance Intelligence Court Has Never Denied Any FBI Or NSA Surveillance Request. TTIP risks to health & environment, 'US pressure on EU' revealed in secret docs leaked by Greenpeace. Another Reason for Brexit: EU 'Was a CIA Project from the Beginning' Ankara conducts air raids on Kurdish positions in Iraq & southeast Turkey. NATO to send 4,000 troops to border with Russia - report.
Finnish parliament discusses ‘reviving economy’ by ditching euro. Belgian police knew Paris attackers plotted ‘irreversible act’ since 2014. In pursuit of 2017 budget, Pentagon sees danger everywhere — RT America. Daesh 'Turns Into Trojan Horse that Washington Uses Wherever It Wants' Good Enough? Ignoring All Evidence, US Marines Accept Faulty F-35 Software. Erdogan Plots for US Plan B. No Russia, No Clout: Three Reasons Why Germany Wants Moscow Back in G7. ‘Highway robbery’: Tehran protests assets freeze for US victims of ‘Iranian terror’ CIA doesn’t have to disclose info on drone killings, appeals court rules — RT America. US Domestic Spy Programs Continue Without Any Court Oversight. Hanover Hassle: Obama Meets EU Leaders Amid Conflicts Over Syria, Turkey. UK govt confirms it is pushing for 10-year sentence for web piracy. What Exactly is Washington Hiding in Classified 9/11 Commission Report? Stratfor: Ukraine Should Have No Hopes of Russia Ever Giving Up Crimea.
Lawmakers want to know how often U.S. spies accidentally collect Americans' data. Germans protest Europe trade deal in Hannover before Barack Obama visit. US Secret Court Ruling Exposes NSA 'Reform' Sham - Whistleblower. CIA Psychologists Can be Sued for Creating Torture Program, Judge Says. The Monumental Unraveling Truth Behind 9/11 » Alex Jones' Infowars: There's a war on for your mind! Uk.businessinsider. Merkel Faces Political Mutiny After Charging Comedian for Insulting Erdogan. Hillary Clinton's wealthy donors revealed in Panama Papers — RT America. MPs defy Cameron, unanimously agree ISIS committed genocide against Yazidis & Christians. ‘Terrorism investigation’ Court lets NSA collect telephone records data — RT America. 4 year olds asked to choose gender they ‘most identify with’ on school form. Groundhog Day Syndrome: Why Washington Just Can’t Stop Intervening. 'Russia, China and India Building Multipolar World' That Neo-Cons Don’t Get.
It’s Time to Admit: The ‘9/11 Truthers’ Were Right » Alex Jones' Infowars: There's a war on for your mind! Netherlands moots electric car future with petrol and diesel ban by 2025. How the American Neoconservatives Destroyed Mankind’s Hopes for Peace. USS Donald 'Duck' Cook. Groups Slam EU-Turkey Refugee Deal Over 'Appalling' Migrant Conditions. Lost Political Weight? Merkel's Ratings Down 11% After Erdogan Satire Probe. Uk.businessinsider. ‘Obama shelters IRA sympathizers’: Tory MP blasts US president in Brexit row. ‘Ideological clichés, biased assessments’: Moscow slams US global human rights report. Gut-Wrenching US Hypocrisy at Hiroshima. Europe's Message to Turkey: No Media Freedom, No EU Accession. American Pilots 'Admire Their Russian Counterparts' for Defeating Daesh. Riyadh's Dirty Secret: Saudi Arabia Thirsty for Yemeni Oil, Gas Reserves. 'The New Normal': Why US-Saudi Geopolitical 'Honeymoon' Ended.
UK Airport Sniffer Dogs Discover More Smelly Sausages Than Class A Drugs. Tricks of the Trade: Russia Readies Next Move Amid Growing US Trade Bloc. Erdogan's Turkey Looking More and More Like a Persian Gulf Monarchy. Pig Book: The most expensive ‘pork barrel’ projects in the US budget this year. Brazil Congressional committee recommends impeaching President Rousseff. Venezuela: the land of 500% inflation - Apr. 12, 2016. Panama Papers: global tax officials to launch unprecedented inquiry. Iran's $10Bln Mega Canal Could be Game Changer in Global Trade Routes. Gut-Wrenching US Hypocrisy at Hiroshima. Busted! CIA and Co. Allegedly Used Mossack Fonseca to Hide Activities. What Apple's Options Are Now That the FBI Can Bypass iPhone Security Features. US Military Buildup in Europe Damaging EU-Russia Relations - Envoy. Meet the man trying to save the Pentagon millions—and the big contractors can’t stand it – Rare.
‘Worst mistake as president’: Obama admits he had no plan after Libya regime change. Jail gays, introduce Shariah: New poll claims ‘chasm’ between UK Muslims & everyone else. Don't Be Fooled: NATO Doublespeak is the Real Threat to Peace. Fingerprints to be tested as ‘currency’ Inside one transparency activist's multi-year quest to crack the NSA's CryptoKids. NATO as a War-Racket.