by Chris Faure – for The Saker Blog
At the time of writing, just in from RT – Mr Putin is in Syria on surprise visit and has already held talks with Bashar Assad. It is not hard to understand that world leaders have most probably doubled up on their already excellent security and will travel highly secured, with no pre-announcement.
The myth of the US as the self-purported savior of humankind, the tolerant and benevolent and Good Shining City upon the Hill of democracy, benevolent Uncle Sam that has your back, has now tumbled and is in the process of being exploded. The most favorite terms of the US, “rules-based” world order is disappearing in the mist and the much vaunted “international community” which usually supports the US is strangely quiet.
This statement becomes all the more clear given the UN Security Council (UNSC) meeting yesterday where the US attempted to advance a statement “underscoring the inviolability of diplomatic and consular premises” after the breach of the US embassy in Iraq. This type of statement needs a consensus agreement of all 15 members of the UN Security Council which it did not get.
Russia and China acted forcefully, saying in effect, you’re telling half the story as usual. Tell the truth, add the further events as well, especially “ … the unilateral action from the United States,” China’s U.N. ambassador, Zhang Jun, said. “If the council is supposed to do something, we should have complete coverage of the whole thing.”
This statement from the US illustrates duplicity, odiousness and double talk from the US while trying to advance a statement that diplomatic and consular premises should be inviolate after grabbing Russia diplomatic premises (2017) in the US, and not standing up to their international legal obligations to protect the Venezuelan embassy in the US (2019). We can also mention the grab of Julian Assange by the Brits from the Ecuadorian embassy in London at the behest of the US, to see that this statement by the US is simply attempting to paper over their own shortcomings.
Of course the US are bleating like stuck pigs that Russia and China would not allow their sanctimonious statement to be read out and entered, but we can expect US initiatives in the UN to fail from now on, almost by default at least in the UNSC. The US was told in perfect diplomatic terms translated to street language to Go Fly a Kite, Take a Dive through a Rolling Donut, Sit down and Shut Up, Zip your Lip, GTFO, Hop on the Bus Gus and roll on out of here and see if you can find yourself a new lover. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABXtWqmArUU
At this stage, the future of the United Nations as it stands today may materially change and if it does, it will be a fairly fast change – The Titanic and a certain iceberg comes to mind. Who do you think will attend the next G7 meeting where the US is host?
Withdrawing the unsigned ‘withdrawal of troops’ letter – which one can only describe in military terms as a snafu of massive proportions indicates confusion in the line of command. Perhaps some high level military brass want to do the right things in the dark corridors of the Pentagon, and others are insistent on doubling down while sliding down a very slippery slope.
The smart money at the moment indicates that Mr Trump will be the sacrificial lamb pushed to the bottom of the slope. He has no friends as Andrei Martyanov states. The US has no option now but to go to war of some kind, if they want the myth to continue. We can only hope …. that somebody somewhere understands who they will need to go to war with and step back from the delusions of grandeur of madmen.
The Islamic World
We see the Islamic World uniting. To be true, this is very early days, but the fact that the funerals for Qassem Soleimani and Iraqi anti-terror forces chief Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis were held jointly, and simultaneously ‘repeated’ in many countries across the world, speaks volumes of a united Islamic world.
On a numbers basis, the Islamic World consists of +- 25% of the world population, and have majority in 45 to 50 countries. http://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/muslim-majority-countries/
If you think any war can be contained to Iraq or Iran only, I would seriously urge you to look at those numbers again and take a look at this map and see who the big neighbors are of the main Islamic world and then consider if war is the correct path forward. Skilled diplomacy stands between us and kinetic war. The US does not have diplomats of the required stature and still expect everyone else to obey their imperial diktat.
In reality the Axis of Resistance is growing and the most clear sign is that nobody is submitting to the imperial demand of the U.S.
In addition Iran has declared that they will continue stepping back their commitments to the JPCOA as allowed by the agreement, because of course they cannot uphold a multi-state agreement all by themselves.
Meanwhile Boris Johnson, Emmanuel Macron, and Angela Merkel issued a joint statement on Monday calling for the Islamic Republic to refrain from further “proliferation” and “to reverse all measures inconsistent with the JCPOA,” sidestepping the U.S. action explicitly.” Europe, (or otherwise known as the paralyzed poodles of our world) has consistently attempted but failed to salvage the agreement since the US withdrew in May 2018. We can take this joint statement as weak bluster while they are in a state of paralysis in the wake of the unexpected and brazen US action to take out Iran’s most important military general.
Sputnik reported that Germany is withdrawing troops. https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/202001071077964230-germany-troops-withdrawal-iraq-iran-soleimani/
Looking over the landscape of the first shots being fired in this war that has started, people are usually the first casualties – the lists of ‘warnings’ continue from everywhere.
I have been waiting for The Saker to adjust his 80/20 prediction for war, hoping for a downward adjustment. He has just done so, here, and it is adjusted now to 90% possibility of war, and 10% no war. We will most probably see from him the analysis of this adjustment and the expected roadmap when the dust settles, if it settles. But even Rand Paul agrees: “It’s the Death of Diplomacy with Iran. We’ve taken diplomacy off the table and the only option is military escalation,” says Rand Paul, Senate Foreign Relations Committee, discussing the state of diplomacy between the U.S. and Iran
Many of us are fortunate never having been at war. For others, the following sequence of events will seem very familiar. Will we see detention camps in the US for Iranian and Iraqi American citizens as we saw detention camps for the Japanese and the Germans in WWII?
The Washington state chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-WA) is assisting more than 60 Iranians and Iranian-Americans of all ages who were detained at length and questioned at the Peace Arch Border Crossing in Blaine, Wash. These people crossed the border to attend an Iranian pop concert on Saturday in Vancouver, Canada and were detained on both sides, Canadian and US. Some were denied entry back into the US. The reason given was: “It is just the wrong time for you.” Most detainees were American citizens. This did not help the Japanese during WWII. Still unconfirmed, additional detentions are reported on social media at San Francisco Airport and Los Angeles International Airport.
https://www.cair.com/breaking_cair_wa_assisting_iranian_americans_detained_u_s_border
The List of Warnings can be considered an ‘early warning’ signal
Monitor the ‘warnings’ coming from the various countries. This is only a random grab and there are already many more. This may give you a heads-up when you should have your own head down.
– US can only continue their now empty warnings and beat their empty drums.
https://sputniknews.com/world/202001071077965980-us-issues-warning-about-iranian-threat-in-persian-gulf/
– The Chinese embassy in Washington issued a travel warning to its citizens living or on holiday in the U.S. of increasing security threats following President Trump’s airstrike that killed Iran’s top military commander major general Qassem Soleimani in Iraq on Friday. South China Morning Post
– Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, warned in a statement that the “criminals” responsible for Soleimani’s assassination will face “severe revenge,” and that his work fighting on behalf of the Iranian people “won’t be stopped by his martyrdom,” according to a statement published on Twitter.
– Russia Warns U.S. of ‘Grave Consequences’ of Soleimani Killing – https://www.nationalreview.com/news/qasem-soleimani-killing-russia-warns-united-states-of-grave-consequences/
If you keep your eyes on the media, you will see the List of Warnings grow, become more strident and eventually used to influence whole populations but it can also act as very valuable intelligence to make decisions on a personal basis.
What is clear, is what is illustrated next. (Thanks to Col. Assad)
Mr Trump, the decision that you must leave has been taken. What is at issue now, is simply the mechanism – and the mechanism is why Mr Putin is in Syria.
At this stage, the future of the United Nations as it stands today may materially change and if it does, it will be a fairly fast change – The Titanic and a certain iceberg comes to mind. Who do you think will attend the next G7 meeting where the US is host? https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iraq-security-un-usa/us-accuses-russia-china-of-blocking-un-statement-on-baghdad-embassy-attack-idUSKBN1Z51I5
The big problem, in my personal opinion, UN cannot work without resources, and UN is the servant of US by money. Will China and Russia and other countries fund UN tons of money to convince UN to turn its back to US. In 2016, UN wanted to put Nanking Massacre into Memory of the world but Japan had forced UN stop this by threating withdrawl its funding.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/oct/14/japan-halts-unesco-funding-nanjing-massacre-row
Question: Can China, Russia, and other anti-imperialism country become the main resource of UN that good enough to put AngloZionism into trial?
Hmmm, what about making a smart move – let us call it a compromise. Russia could offer Crimea a special status together with neutrality guarantees to host the UN headquarters for ever.
That would make the peninsula untouchable and also put pressure on Turkey to keep Bosporus free for transit of ships. Or consider Kaliningrad…. got my idea? I do not mean losening the sovereignity over the above mentioned enclaves, only giving them a special status under some conditions: automatic visa admission for any of UN designated diplomatic envoy. One big argument could be also that it is closer to Africa than New York, and we can count with more than 50 countries to vote for it…
> … to host the UN headquarters for ever.
Interesting suggestion! Crimea is a very attractive place and it would be an ideal location for the UN HQ … not in some decadent metropolis but close enough to the big European cities to be not “out of the world”. This also reminds me of similar suggestions I made ages ago in a comment I posted on the Guardian’s cif pages, under the moniker WakaJawaka, in which I also (sort of) predicted the murder of Muammar Gaddafi …
https://www.theguardian.com/discussion/p/2pdev?page=2
WakaJawaka 29 May 2011 06:27
I don’t expect anything from Mme Lagarde as I didn’t expect anything from DSK, no matter what they say. The IMF bears part of the responsibility for the debt crisis. Patching up IMF policies to better deal with the current situation won’t do at all in the long run.
The problem is that none of the international institutions I can think of … UN, UNESCO, WHO, IAEA, IMF, World Bank etc. … represent and serve global interests in an unbiased fashion. They’re all in the wrong hands (capitalists) and in the wrong places (US & Europe). The vast majority of the planet’s human population and all of its nature pay a high price for the inherent corruption that lies at the heart of these institutions. Why can’t we get rid of the UN Security Council? Why is there no truly proportional representation in the UN General Assembly? Why can’t the UN General Assembly have its home in Port-au-Prince, in Bamako or in Dar es Salaam? Why not have the WHO HQ in Sudan, the IAEA HQ in Ukraine or in Belarus? Why not get rid of the IMF altogether and replace it with an institution that is democratically accountable and transparent in its actions? etc. etc. etc. …
One way to make the IMF redundant is to have a number of strong regional or continental currencies that are not based on the US dollar. I think, Gaddafi was up to something with his proposal of an independent, gold-based African currency. The idea is possibly going to cost him his life.
Hi ” the master”
There is no living man stupid enough to try to attack the Crimean Peninsula. It is the safest and the most guarded place on earth. The first thing the Russian did after the Maiden coup ,is to place Bastion missile on the cost line and left them open for US Satelites to see.There was no more moronic ideas about taking back Crimea.
Turkey will never contemplate the idea of closing the Bosphorus . It is a suicide and they know that very well .
Crimea is not an enclave. It is Russia.
Good question Unorthodox Black Sheep VN, the short answer is no.(neither Russia nor China will take over funding the UN).
Secondly, the UN General assembly needs to move from New York to a small neutral country, but it won’t happen because nobody would be willing to fund this.
I’m glad you question these assumptions.
I’ll add my own questioning of assumptions in this article: the attack on Soleimani was not an attack on the entire Muslim world nor do I believe in the fantasy of a unified Muslim ulema that will show solidarity over this very stupid move by the insecure Orange Buffoon in the Whitehouse. The attack was on Iran and Iraq full stop.
The attack on Soleimani was not an attack on Sunni countries. Sunni majority countries have huge diversity in culture and huge diversity in their self interests: for example Indonesia, the largest (in terms of Pop) Muslim nation, will continue to maintain very friendly relationships with the US. Pakistan is viciously anti-shia (despite the Bhutto family being Shi’a) because of the scores of Shi’a massacred regularly every year by their Sunni majority, the Pakistanis make blowhard noises condemning the US, but behind the scenes they will continue stab Iran in the back (and Iran will continue to exterminate Pakistani based wahabbi terrorists both withib Pakistan as well as those that have infiltrated into Iran and Afghanistan). Saudi Arabia and Turkey will continue to harm Iran while milking this assassination for what ever benefit they can get while continuing to support anti-iranian polices.
“UN cannot work without resources”
I refer you to UN Article 1 – Purpose:
https://www.un.org/en/sections/un-charter/chapter-i/index.html
Using a rotated meeting location or video conference – no building is required, no budget is required. Whereas the actual budget is 3 billion dollars for 2020.
It seems like the organization is subject to cancerous growth.
Resources should be granted on a project basis by nations on a voluntary basis.
I afraid the UN Article 1 is not work in reality. Money control anything, you know, and the UN Headquater is at New York City. There are more thing complex than this UN Article 1. If UN Article 1 truly work, UN had stopped the Iraq war 2003.
Love your mixed metaphors. Doubling down while sliding down. As for heads up ,heads down , heads in unspeakable places , One thing is crystal clear :
The U.N. is dead. Zarif was refused entry by whom? Mr Democracy on our terms . The UN as an instrument for peace and reconciliation is de facto obliterated.
That Putin visited the troops in Syria is better than a preschool show and tell for the lame brain trigger happy neocons. I hope he does not plan to attend any meetings set up by the Saudis. And beware those dual citizen Pilots in the Israeli airforce. Fanaticism runs rife on all sides as any sign of negotiation is deemed appeasement.
The UN is the only place where heads of state meet to debate a myriad of issues….. Today it is clear that it has been hyjacked and abused by the most arrogant of nations and international law has been flaunted by their heads of state who were and are scattered all through out the UNSC.
The UN today has failed folk all round the world but…… Just because we have a large school of incompetents and war criminal nation s in attendance does not mean we should shut it down …..
No!
Relocate the premises form the US to a ” as neutral a nation as possible “….. The US British and israel have abused and offended people kind for way too long …
!!! I am serious…
Its time to relocate the International meeting house ….
Chris,
Unlike other commenters on this website, I cannot comment on the theme and content of your essay. However, I will say this the style of its writing, the structure, the supportive links, and even the illustrations are absolutely exceptional! It is a rare to find such work on the Internet – even on this website.
Your work is a joy to read.
Thank you
You’re welcome R Mike and your comment is much appreciated.
Dear Sir, this is huge – not only for Iraqis, Trump is really a master salesman (of russian weaponry), please elaborate on it, and yes, Patriots are inferior to it https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/russia-proposes-secure-iraqi-airspace-s-400-air-defense
I can’t agree with the statement that the Islamic world is uniting. Except for some pro-Iran elements here and there most Sunnis are either indifferent and trying not to get involved or still leaning towards Saudi Arabia. Even in Iraq and Lebanon there are people who don’t want to get involved in the conflict and/or openly opposed to Iranian influence. I could be wrong as I’m basing this on incomplete data, but the Sunni-Shia divide is still there. I’m more curious about what the Gulf states such as Qatar and Bahrain think of all this.
Do you truly consider Saudi Arabia as part of the Islamic World?. Qatar actually changed the color of their flag to the black of mourning when making their visit of condolence to Iran.
Chris, I have two Egyptian friends.
One told me that this would not be an earthshaking event in Egypt for various reasons, including lingering resentments against Iran.
The other – who is an American citizen with an Anglo-Saxon wife – told me that it is troublesome, but family friends in Egypt had told him that it would be safe for him and his American family to travel there. Nonetheless, he has decided not to return for awhile due to this event.
I myself just cancelled a trip to North Africa in part due to these events.
In any event, neither of them thought that the entire Islamic world would rise up. Nor do I.
On the other hand, I am sure that Shias throughout the world are inflamed. I am also certain that Iraqis, the Yemenis and many Syrians are apoplectic about it. I also have to think that even European leaders are re-considering the desirability of their entanglement with American foreign policy, which has become completely unhinged.I agree that this was a colossal strategic blunder by Trump and may very well spell the end of the American empire. I just don’t agree that they whole Islamic world will rise up.
Re how the rest of the Arabic Islamist world views KSA – I have a son who lived and worked for a year in KSA then for a few years in Oman. The first he loathed and couldn’t wait to leave, the latter he and his wife loved very much, leaving only when she became pregnant.
His comment was “all the other Arabic states loathe the Saudies. They say that they are hypocrites, they punish people in SA for doing things the wealthy rulers do as soon as they leave the place. They also, he said, are said to give Islam a bad name around the world!!
One mans’ opinion derived from many conversations with non-Saudi Arabic Islamist men!!
Saudi Arabia is a head-chopping hell hole. The average person has no importance there. They are disposable units.
Some links and pictures concerning schedule, trips and events, related to President Putin in the beginning of the Year 2020:
— The night of Jan 7 Putin prayed in the Cathedral where he had been baptized (there is a picture gallery there, where you can see a different Putin)
https://www.gazeta.ru/politics/photo/putin-again-celebrated-christmas-in-petersburg.shtml
— on the same day Putin came to Syria
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmrfbmcN0pI
https://aftershock.news/?q=node/821088
— Jan 8 Putin will go to Istanbul to meet Erdogan
—Jan 11 Merkel will come to Moscow…
God help him and all of us
shed
What is the “number” that will define whether the American people stop Washington’s march towards war? Is it: one million, one hundred thousand or ten thousand? No, not that high at all.
The count is just 535, a very manageable number.
The 535 represents the total number of congressional leaders in the House of Representatives (435) and the U.S. Senate (100). These fascist sycophants for Wall Street money, multinational corporate money and Israeli lobbyist money believe they are immune to what the Department of War is doing. They hide in their congressional offices and come out of their holes like South African Meerkats to bloviate their inane thoughts in front of cameras and microphones to pretend to care about the electorate that voted them into high office.
What they cannot fathom happening to them personally is the unthinkable and unknown limit of patience with Americans who are against war and what they will do. Imagine this scenario if you will.
A member of the U.S. Congress returns to his/her home district or State. It is nighttime and one of the family members hears voices outside followed by a firm knock on the front door. The family member opens the door and a man is seen with 50 other men standing behind him. The man asks to speak to the congressman or Senator and refuses to leave until the representative comes out to listen to what will be said. Reluctantly the representative comes to the door and hears this from the leader of the visitors.
“Mr/Madam representative, I represent a grassroots movement to end U.S. Military aggression. We are here to present you with a petition for redress of grievances. That is, for you to meet with your colleagues in the U.S. Congress and craft legislation to immediately stop the funding for the Department of War’s continued occupation of countries in the Middle East to prosecute conflict against them. We ask the Congress to instruct the President to exercise his authority as Commander in Chief to make it happen. If the Congress is unable to come together in a bipartisan manner to effect this or the President refuses to comply then we demand you resign from office.”
The representative refuses and threatens to call the police if the visitor and his followers do not immediately leave. The visitor ignores the response and continues to speak.
“We will wait two weeks and if the Congress doesn’t address our petition or you do not submit your resignation we will hold you personally accountable and this beautiful home you and your family live in will be no more. Good evening, sir/madam.”
All across the 50 States, PAW (Patriots Against War) will be making this petition to the 535 members of Congress. What this scenario demonstrates is that rioting in the streets, destroying property by fire or vandalism and confronting a heavily armed police force isn’t necessary, such as what happened in Ferguson, Missouri or the ongoing rioting enacted by the brave citizens of France who are members of the Yellow Vest movement.
Prior to the American Revolution, the King of England received petitions from the colonists to address grievances. They were ignored and revolution ensued. Today we Americans are not dealing with a foreign occupier but our own government that no longer represents our interests. We have to act, we have to stop it, we have to stand together, be resolute and not succumb to the evil in Washington, DC.
We just celebrated the remembrance of the birth of Christ our Lord and Savior, which brings families together. Look at the faces of our teenage children; think about how much you love them. I don’t want my grandsons (and granddaughters) to be conscripted into the military and die on foreign soil for the glory of those “flaming peacocks” in the Pentagon. I went through that as a ignorant youth during the Vietnam War and 58,000 of my peers perished in pointless sacrifice. I want peace at home and abroad
It’s just 535, a small number and it can be done. It’s only a matter of doing.
I think its even fewer than that, and all along Trump has stated he wants the troops out of the middle east. This very well could be the trigger that accomplishes that. And once used as precedent could then be used at other foriegn bases, and once the bases are closed down the need to send aid to these country’s (like Ukraine) can also stop, we have plenty of problems need fixed right here at home, the money is better spent here. The whole thing wont happen overnight, but a commitment started is a good campaign promise met right as the election cycle gets heated up and all the hot air from the msm turns to dust.
Just had an email to say that someone in Iraq has apparently masterfully ‘trolled’ a certain US Colonel in a certain US base north of Bagdad, Iraq.
The message apparently contained the following short Youtube clip from the US TV series ‘The Sopranos’.
The metaphores (such as the brash, violent, and lawless biker gang for US forces, and the bar owner asking them to leave for the Iraqis, and then locking of the bar door by the owner mirroring Iran and the straights of Hormuz) are perfect.
The overall message to the US contained in this short clip is outstanding. Whoever sent it is clearly a master of the art of ‘trolling’, just hope it did not go over the head of the US officer it was sent to – enjoy:
https://youtu.be/M5wi9jOl9Uo?t=31
The clip was from “A Bronx Tale”, but it is a perfect metaphor.
The Iranians looks very scared of the US and the propaganda…
https://twitter.com/inqalabiyah/status/1214580178103484421
short vid that explains why there was so many people attending the Generals funeral in Iran,.-
😏 😁
Honorable Saker: I am not sure true or not, someone needs to study this:
“A translation of the below thread by Ahmad Khazraji on Iraqi caretaker Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi, in which he reveals the reasons he held his silence and resigned.
(Most significantly, he reveals that US Marine snipers fired at Iraqi protestors.”
https://twitter.com/IbnRiad/status/1214408047302520832
and more:
https://www.moonofalabama.org/2020/01/blowback-from-the-soleimani-assassination-increases-as-iraq-reveals-how-trump-tried-to-steal-its-oil.html
Do they ever record international calls? Why Mahdi just not publish them?
PS: More links: I stumbled upon these in todday’s: https://colonelcassad.livejournal.com/
English readers probably can use Google to translate.
”Meanwhile Boris Johnson, Emmanuel Macron, and Angela Merkel issued a joint statement on Monday calling for the Islamic Republic to refrain from further ’proliferation’ and ’to reverse all measures inconsistent with the JCPOA’ ”
Filthy, plain ugly Euro-trash issuing their arrogant, silly ’statements’ won’t resonate too well with governments having the wits and the guts to do something about decadent, idiotic oppressor nations.
The letter announcing a withdrawal appears to have been a deliberate attempt by the Pentagon to fool the Iraqis into standing down whilst the US flew in materiel to strengthen their bases.
See https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/us-sent-reinforcements-northern-baghdad-during-withdraw-reports-says-security-expert
Good article. Straight up, just the way I like it.
>The US does not have diplomats of the required stature and still expect everyone else to obey their imperial diktat.
I got a chuckle from this statement because it seems such an understatement. This arrogant gang doesn’t really use diplomacy. They use threats, intimidation, and demands. Their carrier fleets are their diplomats.]
The statement by BoJo, Macron, and Merkle? What a pathetic group. Poodles is a good name for them. Why aren’t they demanding the U.S. fulfill its obligations and stop killing people?
There is growing demands for the U.S. to get out of Iraq and the region. They have no intention of leaving and that cartoon shows the truth of what is about to happen. The region is going to blow up. In a recent comment I stated that I placed the odds of war to be well above 80%. I would say 99% to 100% there is going to be war. It is going to be a really big, bloody mess. I can see the Saudi oil fields burning. I guess it will be a great day for those investing in oil on the stock market but it will be a very bad time for the world. I didn’t realize border guards had already started harassing people of Iranian descent. Life in North America is going to become a ‘papers please’ society.
The refusal of a visa to speak at the UN is to me even more stunning than the assassination.
Next on the US agenda: Takedown of UN delegates who do make it through JFK to the East River?
Katherine
> Mr Putin is in Syria on surprise visit …
… I find this worrying as the Turkish President has proven time and time again that he cannot be trusted. This treacherous rat is capable of blasting the Russian President’s IL-96 out of the sky, possibly even with one of his (as yet unpaid?) S-400s. Imagine that! Of course, initially this would be a huge event, many times more significant than even the murder of Soleimani. But ultimately, I think, this wouldn’t lead to a large war as nobody wants to be responsible for millions of deaths in Russia, across Europe and in the US. So, what would be the price Turkey would have to pay for such a treason? Diplomatic relations and trade between Russia and Turkey would of course come to a complete halt and, as we have seen a few years ago, this would hurt Turkey quite a bit because they’d have to find new customers for their tomatoes and stuff like this. Then, there’s a pipeline project and two NPP projects, all of which would come to an immediate halt. But since Russia has been doing most of the financing for these projects, this would hurt Russia much more than Turkey. And the benefit of all of this for Turkey? Well, after a short period of fake mourning for the deceased Russian President, such a treason would turn out hugely beneficial for Erdogan personally. He would be welcomed back with open arms into the western cabal and since he is a greedy bastard (he and his family were and possibly still are directly involved in stealing Syrian oil), Nato and Wall Street would probably make him a billionaire many times over. Turkey would also get its much desired F-35s and there would no more delays with other such deliveries. And the biggest benefit of all? With Medvedev in charge, whom the western imperialists probably rightfully consider a pushover, Russia and thus the entire planet would be finished (unless Shoygu or some others instigate a coup). Tough, hu?!
Of course, all of this is just a worry, a dark fantasy, far fetched and all of that. But is such a scenario impossible? No, of course not! Things could go this way, now or at some point in the future. And this very fact I find … well, totally unacceptable and it is my one big criticism of Putin, who has never seen fit to make sure there’s some sort of continuity after he’s out of office.
– “… and it is my one big criticism of Putin, who has never seen fit to make sure there’s some sort of continuity after he’s out of office”
— So, you are thinking about continuity in Russia, and Putin is not ? LOL.
We know one breed of people who are as delusional and exceptional, as you are. Aren’t you one of them ?
In the unlikely event Putin shouldn’t survive his flight home, Medvedev will call the shots in the Kremlin … and where will be the continuity then? Did you even read what I have written? Are you familiar with the term “pushover” ?
My worry also as Medvedev is an Atlanticist and might try to flip Russia!
Putin was planning to visit Turkey on January 8th to open the Turkstream gas pipeline. The Empire may send murders to take him out as they did in Donbass on several occasions. Glad to see that Russia sent a a recently upgraded missile destroyer to Turkey and another off Syria.
Exactly.
Putin doesn’t engage in twitter diarrhea nor does he feel compelled to over share by vomiting it over the press.
I think a successor has already been chosen and groomed to ensure a continuity of leadership.
We will know when it happens and that it what makes Putin truly unpredictable and a great statesman.
The refusal of a visa to a delegate to address the UN is to me even more stunning than the assassination.
Next on the US agenda: Takedown of UN delegates who do make it through JFK to the East River?
Katherine
Thanks Chris. And so we wait….
The pathetic, spineless Australian Defence Minister Marie Payne has just sent a letter to the Iraqi Govt begging for Australian troops to be allowed to stay in Iraq.
Obviously doing her little bit to support the ‘Rules based order’. I predict, such is the complete sycophancy of the Australian Govt, it will be one of a handful to support the United States. Obviously, Israel, and places like the Marshall Islands and Colombia will be others.
The entire World, except for the most deluded braindead can see the Empire exposed for the Mafia Cabal it is. I also believe that Iraqi Prime Minister, Abdul Mahdi was personally threatened by Trump as reported at SouthFront and Moon Of Alabama.
And now, also, news that 6 B-52 bombers have been stationed at Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean.
I believe that there’s a 95% chance of war happening. The only way is to avoid it is if the Empire of Evil completely backs down and withdraws. Excellent cartoon by the way.
“We’re going to war Bro!”
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/were-going-war-bro-elite-82nd-airborne-largest-fast-deployment-decade#comment_stream
Picture me shaking my head at the mentality of this American “soldier”.
As if entering a conflict is as inconsequential as a C.O.D video game.
I am horrified, appalled, sickened and saddened all at the same time.
Stupid little fool.
Reminds me of “The Charge of the Light Brigade” by Alfred Lord Tennyson, the poem about stupid vainglorious imperialist soldiers. That March of Folly was in Crimea, in 1854. Here we are, 166 years later, they’re still playing The Great Game, still haven’t learned their lesson.
“Half a league, half a league, half a league onward, into the Valley of Death rode the 600”
“Reuters provided a detailed account of the uneasy yet somewhat jovial calm before the storm atmosphere that prevailed on the airport tarmac at Fort Bragg, North Carolina as 600 soldiers…….. flew out.”
They feed their soldiers donuts, but no fresh fruit. If they survive, they”ll all have diabetes and heart conditions.
But they’re already brain dead.
The conventional expressions are “bleating like a goat” or “bleeding like a stuck pig”.
Just in from Sputnik:
“Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard confirmed early Wednesday morning that Ayn al-Asad Air Base was hit after tens of missiles were fired toward the facility, which contains US forces.”
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/202001081077971219-us-al-asad-air-base-in-iraq-comes-under-rocket-attack-reports/
It’s getting very hot in the ME indeed.
Very good article, indeed.
But the map of the Islamic World is incomplete without India, which has 195 million muslims, albeit not the majority of the population.