Lukashenko critic, who's plane was forced down, is pardoned in Belarus

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Belarus pardons opposition journalist Roman Protasevich

By Simon Druker

 

Belarusian journalist Roman Protasevich had his 8-year prison sentence for opposing the country's leadership regime pardoned, the country’s state-run media reported Monday. File Photo by Stringer/EPA-EFE

May 22 (UPI) -- Imprisoned Belarusian journalist Roman Protasevich said Monday that his 8-year prison sentence was pardoned, the country's state-run media reported Monday.

Protasevich, editor of the opposition media channel Nexta on Telegram, said he "signed all the relevant documents" and was pardoned of his conviction for Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko's authoritarian government, the state-run BELTA news agency reported.

"This, of course, is just great news," he said.

Protasevich thanked Lukashenko for the pardon and said he planned to go to "a quiet place in the countryside for a couple of days ... in order to take a breather and start to move forward."

He was convicted last month for organizing mass riots, advocating sanctions against Belarus, leading an extremist group, and conspiring to seize power.

State media did not mention Protasevich's girlfriend Sofia Sapega, who was sentenced last May to six years in prison.

The two were on a commercial flight in May of 2021 from Greece to Lithuania when Belarusian authorities warned the pilots of the Ryanair plane about an alleged bomb threat. That caused the plane to enter Belarusian airspace. A military jet then forced the aircraft into diverting to Minsk where Protasevich and Sapega were hauled off the plane and jailed, in what became an international incident.

At the time, the U.N. Human Rights Commission said the plane was "hijacked" by Lukashenko's regime to "abduct" the journalist.

Russia was providing consular services to Sapega. I wonder if they did some arm-twisting here?

Military Madness > War is Profitable! Afghan collapse predicted months in advance; UK sending 'defensive' weapons to Ukraine; Canada sending special forces; NATO build-up near Belarus

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US seeking ways to profit should Russia-Ukraine conflict break out

Washington is predicting a probable military assault despite firm denials by Russia

© Getty Images / Mischa Keijser

The US State Department has reportedly held talks with international energy majors on the possibility of contingency supplies of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Europe if conflict between Russia and Ukraine disrupts deliveries.

Over the past several months, the White House has repeatedly expressed the concern that Russia is preparing to launch a military assault on Ukraine. Russia has made it clear it has no such plans.

The US administration has threatened Moscow with another round of “crippling” sanctions in the event of a conflict between the neighboring states.

The imposition of penalties could disrupt the supply of Russian LNG to Europe, which accounts for about a third of European energy imports, and would inevitably exacerbate the energy crisis that has recently hit the region.

Representatives of the State Department have therefore been negotiating to secure alternative energy supply sources in case they are needed, according to industry sources and US officials cited by Reuters. The discussions were reportedly led by the senior adviser for energy security, Amos Hochstein.

“We’ve discussed a range of contingencies … with our nation state partners and allies,” the unnamed source told the agency on Friday.

“We’ve done this with the European Commission, but we’ve also done it with energy companies. It’s accurate to say that we’ve spoken to them about our concerns and … about a range of contingencies, but there wasn’t any sort of ask when it comes to production,” they added.

Energy corporations have reportedly warned US government officials about the tightness of LNG supplies across the world, saying there is little gas available to substitute the large volumes commonly shipped by Russia.

“The United States promised to have Europe’s back if there was an energy shortage due to conflict or sanctions. Amos is going to big LNG-producing companies and countries like Qatar to see if they can help the United States,” the sources said.

Reuters is reporting that the US National Security Council has confirmed that contingency planning is underway.

“Assessing potential spillovers, and exploring ways to reduce those spillovers, is good governance and standard practice,” a spokesperson told the agency.

“Any details in this regard that make their way to the public only demonstrate the extensive … seriousness with which we are discussing … significant measures with our allies and partners.”

The US has been aggressively ramping up exports of LNG. In December, the country became the world’s top exporter of the fuel for the first time ever, thanks to surging deliveries to energy-starved Europe.

Last week, German European Affairs Minister Michael Roth said harsh criticism expressed by the US over the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project, led by Russia’s Gazprom, can be mainly attributed to Washington’s ambition to sell more of its own expensive LNG to European consumers.

And, it appears they are ready to start a war to continue that ambition. Who cares about Ukraine anyway???!!!

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US Afghanistan watchdog predicted air force’s collapse

months in advance

SIGAR says lack of focus and dependence on contractors were among the issues

that sealed the Afghan Air Force’s fate

© Global Look Press / Saifurahman Safi

The US’ Afghan war watchdog saw the collapse of the country’s air force coming months before it happened, citing its over-dependence on the US and third-party contractors, among other issues, as major obstacles.

The demise of the Afghan Air Force was predicted by the US’ Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) in a January 2021 report - only made public last week - which described a force wrestling with a host of thorny issues.

SIGAR warned that should US military advisers and contractors leave without putting in place a comprehensive plan for transfer of power, the AAF might find itself unable to “staff, manage, fund, or maintain their forces,” imperiling the US’ 20-year “nation building” effort. The agency specifically pointed to the AAF’s failure to focus on non-combat support activities, suggesting that leaving such important tasks for contractors and outside advisers would leave the country’s military at a disadvantage, unable to operate independently.

Noting that operational “sustainability requires the recruitment, training and retention of qualified personnel in all areas of the air forces, including pilots, maintainers and personnel in support positions,” the report observed that the Afghan Air Force lacked so much as a comprehensive recruiting strategy - let alone other support functions required to operate a military detachment.

Worse, the AAF’s dependence on contractors meant even if US and coalition forces remained deployed or withdrew in an orderly manner, the department might find itself unable to function should contractors be recalled.

SIGAR’s recommendations - develop and implement formal recruiting strategies, incorporate “support personnel and their training requirements,” and complete a “mitigation plan” to ensure the continuation of “essential maintenance, operation and advisory support” to the AAF in the event that contractors were required to leave Afghanistan - appear to have fallen on deaf ears.

The US had scarcely concluded its longest-ever war in August, when the Afghan government was quickly overtaken by the Taliban shortly after. The Biden administration has been excoriated for its alleged mishandling of the withdrawal, which left thousands of Afghan civilian collaborators in harm’s way and all but gift-wrapped millions of dollars’ worth of US military equipment for the Taliban.

20 years of effort and an enormous amount of money was completely destroyed before the US military had even left Kabul. An astonishing waste, which, we find out today, was anticipated months in advance.

For all the men and women who suffered and/or died over there because they believed in what they were doing, this is completely disgraceful.

UK sends ‘defensive weapons’ to Ukraine, invites Russia for talks

British defence secretary confirms ‘light anti-armour’ munitions were sent to Kiev

amid rising tensions with Moscow

FILE PHOTO: A Ukrainian marine at a fighting position on the line of separation from pro-Russian rebels, Donetsk region, Ukraine, January 7, 2022. ©  AP / Andriy Dubchak

The United Kingdom has begun sending light arms to Ukraine, Britain’s top military official said, though he claimed the weapons “pose no threat to Russia” after repeated allegations that Moscow is planning to invade its neighbor.

“We have taken the decision to supply Ukraine with light anti-armour defensive weapon systems,” Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told lawmakers on Monday, adding initial shipments had already arrived in the country hours prior.

Despite the growing enmity, Wallace said he invited his Russian counterpart, Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu, to meet in London sometime in the coming weeks to work through the issue, adding “the current gap is wide but not unbridgeable,” and that he remains “hopeful that diplomacy will prevail.”

While the official did not provide details about the number or type of arms sent, he said they are “not strategic weapons and pose no threat to Russia,” and are to be used by Ukrainian forces “in self-defence” only. A “small number” of British troops will also train local soldiers on how to use the new gear.

“These are short-range... but nevertheless it would make people pause and think what they were doing and if tanks were to roll into Ukraine, invade it, then they would be part of the defence mechanism,” Wallace continued.

The UK and US governments continue to predict an imminent invasion of Ukraine by Russia, despite the latter’s insistence that it has no plans for an armed incursion. Nonetheless, over the weekend, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan claimed Moscow would “fabricate a pretext” to invade, threatening a “robust response” that would target Russia economically. A proposal to sever Moscow from the SWIFT international banking network is also reportedly still on the table.

Sullivan’s warning, as well as London’s vow to arm up the Ukrainian military, come days after several current and former US officials told Yahoo News that intelligence agencies are now “training an insurgency” in Ukraine in the event of a Russian invasion, with one ex-CIA staffer saying the program is instructing troops on how to “kill Russians.”

Canada deploys special forces to Ukraine – media

Ottawa has reportedly sent elite troops to assist both Canadian diplomats

and the Kiev government

FILE PHOTO: Canadian troops are seen during the opening of a joint Ukrainian-Canadian military drill, in the Lviv Region, Ukraine. ©  Sputnik / Stringer

Canadian special forces have been deployed to Ukraine amid rising tensions with Moscow, according to Canada’s Global News, which reported that a small team was sent to Kiev in order to deter alleged “Russian aggression.”

In addition to bolstering Ukrainian forces, the soldiers will help to “develop evacuation plans for Canadian diplomatic personnel in the event of a full-scale invasion," the broadcaster reported on Monday, citing unnamed sources.

While Moscow has repeatedly denied that it has any plans to invade, Western powers – led by the the US – have sounded alarms about an impending military incursion, pointing to Russian military movements on its side of the border. Earlier on Monday, the UK declared that it would provide the Ukrainian military with light anti-armor munitions in the event of a stand-off with Russian troops.

Canadian officials have so far declined to confirm the reported deployment, with the country’s special operations command only stating that it takes part in “broader… efforts to support Ukraine’s security forces.” The command added that Canadian troops have trained Ukrainian counterparts since 2020, though the sources reached by Global News say the latest deployment is not a training mission.

The decision to send special operators would mirror a similar move by US intelligence to train up an “insurgency” of Ukrainian fighters to “kill Russians” should they invade, as was reported last week by Yahoo News, citing current and former officials. It also follows a warning from the Canadian government that citizens should “reconsider travel” to Ukraine “due to increased threats from Russia.” Canada boasts the world’s second-largest Ukrainian expat community, after Russia, its next-door neighbor.

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NATO mounting build-up near Belarus, Russia claims

Ambassador’s comments come amid a standoff between Russia and the organization

By Layla Guest

© Sean Gallup / Getty Images

Amid heightened tensions with NATO, Moscow has vowed that it will not turn a blind eye to the US-led military bloc’s purported build-up near Belarus, as Russian officials seek responses to their proposed security guarantees.

Speaking as part of an interview with TASS published on Tuesday, Russia’s ambassador to Minsk, Boris Gryzlov, remarked “we see that the build-up of NATO forces and resources, in fact, does not stop at our gates.”

He continued, stating that during the migrant crisis, when thousands of would-be asylum seekers from troubled nations, mainly in the Middle East, attempted to cross over from the former Soviet republic into EU states, additional forces, including heavy weapons were moved to the Belarusian border from Poland.

Gryzlov cautioned that such actions from NATO and its partners “of course, does not go unnoticed.” He added that the two states take a careful approach to border protection, and that joint Russian-Belarusian air patrols are regularly organized, using “long-range Tu-22M3 bombers, Su-30SM multirole fighters, and others.”

The envoy also announced that a round of exercises called ‘Allied Resolve’ 2022 will begin in February. He noted that Western states often interpret any joint drills between Moscow and Minsk as a threat to themselves. “The Russian and Belarusian militaries clearly and coherently demonstrated their training, conducted their exercises to perfection, and then returned to their permanent deployments,” the ambassador said.

Gryzlov’s remarks come amid heightened tensions between NATO and Russia. Last week, the organization’s representatives and Russian diplomats met to discuss proposed guarantees designed to safeguard security on the European continent, following talks between officials from Washington and Moscow.

Last month, Russia handed over two draft treaties – one to Washington and the other to the military bloc – which included a request for assurances from NATO concerning the movement of military personnel and hardware, as well as calls for the organization to refrain from further enlargement close to Russia’s borders.

In late November, Belarus’ embattled President Alexander Lukashenko said Russia should deploy atomic warheads on his country’s territory if NATO’s nuclear weapons are advanced eastwards through Europe.

Relations between Minsk and the West have deteriorated in recent months. The EU has accused Belarus of laying on flights from troubled nations to wage a “hybrid warfare” against Brussels, which Belarus has denied, instead insisting that officials cannot stop the flow of people trying to cross over due to the pressure of sanctions.

However, Lukashenko admitted it was possible some of his officials had helped the would-be asylum seekers to cross over, but said it wasn’t worth looking into.

Military Madness > UK Allowed BA Flight into Danger; Poland Wants NATO Troops on Russian Borders; Nuclear Weapons in Belarus? NATO Moving Weapons Eastward

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UK deceit in hostage situation acknowledged after 3 decades

24 Nov, 2021 08:07

FILE PHOTO: British Airways tail fins at Heathrow Airport. ©REUTERS / John Sibley

The British government failed to tip British Airways about the ongoing Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, leading to one of its planes falling into a trap. The Foreign Office has been deceiving the public about it for three decades.

A call made at night by the British ambassador to Kuwait, in which he informed London about the August 1990 attack by Saddam Hussein’s troops, was confirmed on Tuesday by Foreign Secretary Liz Truss. Previously, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) insisted that the envoy, Sir Michael Weston, and the government were unaware of the invasion on the night it happened.

British Airways flight 149 was scheduled to go from London to Kuala Lumpur, with a stop in Kuwait’s Madras International Airport. Less than an hour after landing there, the airport was closed, and the crew and over 300 passengers were captured by Iraqi troops. Many of them were held hostage for up to five months, some facing mistreatment and abuse by their captors.

On the night of the invasion, the British ambassador made a phone call to report that Iraqi troops had crossed the Kuwaiti border. The information was relayed to various branches of the government, but not to the airline, which had no reason to believe that landing in Kuwait could be dangerous. The plane touched down more than an hour after the ambassador delivered his report.

Documents pertaining to the call were released on Tuesday by the National Archives as part of the British policy of publishing older government documents. While they confirm the effort by the government to suppress the call’s existence, they shed no light on a theory that the flight was involved in a British intelligence operation.

BA flight 149 took off from Heathrow two hours late. Some members of the crew said they saw a group of around 10 people escorted by someone in a military uniform onto the plane. There has long been speculation that the plane carried British military spotters to Kuwait in expectation of the invasion.

In a written statement to Parliament, Secretary Truss reiterated that the delayed take-off was due to technical problems, and pointed out that the documents released were consistent with assurances made to Parliament in 2007, that “the Government at the time did not attempt in any way to exploit the flight by any means whatever.”

The failure to inform British Airways was due to the lack of information about the scale of the Iraqi invasion, and the lack of a formal mechanism for sharing the information, an oversight that has since been fixed, Truss said. She called the government’s obfuscation about the ambassador’s call until now “unacceptable,” and apologised to the lawmaker for it. “I express my deepest sympathy to those who were detained and mistreated,” she wrote.

If the plane had taken off in time, it might well have avoided the attack on the airport. Was the plane delayed by the military to get their people onboard? Was the military responsible for holding up the plane and not informing BA of the dangers in Kuwait? If not, why the efforts to keep the whole thing secret for 30 years?

She also said the sole responsibility for the hostage crisis remains with Saddam Hussein’s government, seemingly indicating that the newly released documents are not an admission of liability for the purpose of potential lawsuits.

Truss, it appears, is not interested in the truth, only liability.

NATO is having a field day selling all sorts of weapons to Europeans whom they are terrifying with their hyperbolic rhetoric of Russia. The latest push is trying to scare Germany into buying a new fleet of American-made aircraft capable of delivering atomic bombs. 
The risks of ramping up the weaponry doesn't seem the least bit concerning to NATO, as long as the inventory of war keeps rolling. NATO is making the world a far less safer place than it has to be - the very opposite of its intended purpose. 

Poland wants NATO to move more troops closer to Russia

Is the Polish Gov't paranoid, or is there money changing hands somewhere?

25 Nov, 2021 17:45

Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Polish President Andrzej Duda hold a joint press conference in Brussels, Belgium on November 25, 2021. © Getty Images / Dursun Aydemir

Poland’s president, Andrzej Duda, has suggested NATO should expand its presence in Eastern Europe to defend friendly states outside the US-led military bloc.

Speaking with the organisation's Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Thursday, Duda cited the alleged recent “relocation of Russian forces around the Ukrainian border.” He said that the group should make its presence felt to a greater degree on its eastern flank to “show all potential aggressors that NATO is ready.” He went on to describe Kiev as an important external partner, whose security is at stake.

Stoltenberg echoed the Polish president’s concerns over Ukraine and called on Russia to “be transparent, reduce tensions and de-escalate the situation.” The NATO chief, however, stopped short of commenting on any military expansion near Russia’s borders, adding that the foreign ministers of NATO member states will convene in Latvia next week to discuss the situation with their counterparts from Ukraine and Georgia, another country which the bloc is trying to pull into its orbit. 

On Sunday, the Kremlin dismissed reports in Western media about Moscow’s alleged plans to invade Ukraine as “artificially fomented hysteria.” The Russian Foreign Ministry accused NATO of creating tensions along the country’s Western border.

Among other hot-button topics that dominated the talks between Duda and Stoltenberg on Thursday was the migrant crisis on the frontier with Belarus. The Polish leader claimed that Minsk was continuing its “hybrid attack,” by which he meant "weaponizing" migrants. He asserted that it enjoyed the full support of Moscow in doing so, but noted, however, that the tactics allegedly used by Belarusian authorities at the border have somewhat changed. Now smaller groups of asylum seekers are trying to cross, to the EU, under the cover of darkness, Duda reported, as opposed to previous large pushes in broad daylight.

Stoltenberg, in turn, noted that Warsaw has so far been able to successfully tackle the migrant crisis on its own, without the bloc’s direct intervention. Stoltenberg added that NATO stands in solidarity with Poland and is ready to consider any requests for assistance.

Belarus has maintained all along that sweeping Western sanctions are stifling its ability to effectively manage migrant flows headed for the EU. Russia, for its part, has consistently claimed it has nothing to do with the crisis on the EU border.

Belarus may invite Russian nuclear weapons into country

30 Nov, 2021 17:44

By Layla Guest

Belarus’ leader has said Russia should deploy atomic warheads inside his country’s borders if NATO’s nuclear weapons are advanced eastwards through Poland, amid a growing row with the West.

Speaking in an interview with RIA Novosti on Tuesday, Alexander Lukashenko threatened to increase the amount of deadly hardware facing off across the frontier if American-made nukes are moved further into Eastern Europe.

In that case, Lukashenko said, “I will suggest that [Russian President Vladimir] Putin return nuclear weapons to Belarus.” According to him, the restoration of a Soviet-era nuclear deterrent over the territory using “those atomic armaments would be the most effective in such a case.”

“I am not saying this for no reason,” he went on, “we are ready for this on the territory of Belarus.” Lukashenko, however, did not specify which type of system he wanted to be used, and claimed that this would be “agreed” by the two sides.

The bombshell remarks from Belarus’ long-time leader came after the US-led military bloc’s head, Jens Stoltenberg, expressed concern earlier this month that Germany’s new government could decline to purchase a new fleet of aircraft capable of launching nuclear weapons once chancellor Angela Merkel leaves her post.

And, after all, that's what this hyperbole is all about - selling arms to Europe. Stoltenberg is the Salesman and Chief of NATO.

Stoltenberg said that NATO’s nukes “provide European Allies with an effective nuclear umbrella. This, of course, also includes our eastern Allies and they are an important signal of Allied unity against any nuclear-armed adversary.” The bloc’s chief said that the plans to shuttle armaments was necessary because of the alleged threat posed by Russia.

There's the hyperbole!

Stoltenberg’s proposals drew ire in the Kremlin, with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko proclaiming that the NATO head’s remarks threaten the peace accords signed between the two parties. The Founding Act on Mutual Relations, Cooperation and Security, inked between Russia and the US-led bloc, was signed in May 1997. Under the agreement, Moscow and NATO do not consider each other as opponents. The document separately promised not to station nuclear weapons on the territory of new members of the bloc from that date onwards.

The military bloc’s potential deployment of atomic warheads even closer to Russia has long been a point of contention in relations between the two powers. Last year, Lavrov’s deputy, Sergey Ryabkov, said that Moscow hopes the US will stop “‘sharing’ nuclear weapons with its allies.”

Not if there is money to be made!!!

Belarus has been locked into a worsening row with neighboring Poland in recent weeks amid a sharp rise in the number of migrants attempting to cross the border. The EU accuses Minsk of putting on flights from troubled countries like Iraq and Syria, before forcing desperate people to assault the fence in a bid to put pressure on the bloc over sanctions against the country.

Speaking earlier this month, Lukashenko admitted it was possible some of his officials had helped the would-be asylum seekers to cross over, but said it wasn’t worth looking into. Minsk accuses the bloc of orchestrating a “hybrid war” by hosting exiled opposition figures and media outlets banned within Belarus.

NATO shipping weaponry to Russian border – Moscow

30 Nov, 2021 15:45

By Layla Guest

Alarming quantities of weapons are being shuttled by NATO towards the border with Russia, Moscow's top diplomat has warned, adding that Western states are engaging in provocations that could lead to an actual armed conflict.

Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov revealed that “significant units and armaments from NATO countries, including American and British, are being moved closer to our borders.”

He said that, in neighboring Ukraine, “more and more forces and equipment are being accumulated on the line of contact in the Donbas, supported by an increasing number of Western instructors.”

According to the veteran diplomat, these nations also encourage officials in Kiev to take anti-Russian actions, which he said can easily “turn into military adventures.” 

Lavrov warned that “if the West cannot hold back Ukraine – and actually encourages it – of course we will take all necessary steps to ensure our security.”

He also blasted the West’s long-term pushing of other states into anti-Russian ventures, noting that the incorporation of former Soviet republics into the military bloc is the “brightest example” of this – a move which Russia has openly denounced.

Lavrov’s remarks come amid reignited tensions between the US-led alliance and Moscow. In a recent interview with CNN, its chief, (Salesman and Chief) Jens Stoltenberg, said NATO had tripled the size of its resource force and bulked up its presence in both the Black and Baltic seas to counter Russian presence.

A US Navy guided-missile destroyer, the ‘Arleigh Burke’, was shipped off to the Black Sea some days ago not long after two other American warships were spotted cruising in the same waters near Russia.

Anatoly Antonov, Russia’s ambassador in Washington, also warned against underestimating Moscow’s will to respond to what he described as NATO’s threats in Ukraine, stating in an interview on Saturday that doing so “is a very dangerous delusion.”

Lavrov also slammed the alleged use of US-made rockets by Ukrainian forces fighting separatists in the east of the country, which he warned is increasing the prospect of a full-blown conflict in the war-torn region.

Earlier in November, Russia’s deputy foreign minister, Alexander Grushko, blasted Stoltenberg’s plans to deploy American warheads around Eastern European nations due to alleged threats posed by Moscow’s “aggressive actions,” insisting this endangered existing peace accords inked between the two sides.

European Politics > Belarus Begins Repatriating Migrants; Berlin May Re-Do Elections; Top EU Ministers Quarantined

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Hundreds of Iraqis fly home from Belarus, abandoning effort to reach EU

Many migrants moved to warehouse in Belarus as temperatures fall

The Associated Press · 

Posted: Nov 18, 2021 7:41 AM ET 

Hundreds of Iraqis flew home from Belarus on Thursday, abandoning their hopes of reaching the European Union following more than a week of tensions at the bloc's eastern border, where thousands of migrants became stuck.

Many others moved into a heated warehouse to escape the bitter cold, emptying out a camp near the border with Poland, Belarusian state-run media reported. But the Polish Defence Ministry posted a video that showed a few hundred people and a few dozen tents remained at an official crossing where skirmishes broke out recently.

It was not clear if the two countries were talking about two different sites on their shared border, but it was typical of the duelling narratives that have marked the crisis, in which both Belarus and Poland have sought to portray themselves in a positive light while depicting the other as unfeeling and irresponsible.

Tensions flared in recent days, with about 2,000 people, mostly from the Middle East, trapped in a dank forest as forces from the two countries faced off against each other. About half of them were women and children, according to the UN refugee agency. At least 12 people have died in the area in recent weeks, including a one-year-old whose death a Polish humanitarian organization reported Thursday.

Most are fleeing conflict or hopelessness at home and aim to reach Germany or other western European countries. But Poland didn't want to let them in, and Belarus didn't want them returning to the capital of Minsk or otherwise settling in the country.

West blames Lukashenko

The West has accused Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko of luring the migrants to the border to use them as pawns to destabilize the 27-nation bloc in retaliation for its sanctions on his authoritarian regime. Belarus denies orchestrating the crisis, which has seen migrants entering the country since summer and then trying to cross into Poland, Lithuania and Latvia.

Amid the tug-of-war, a total of 430 Iraqis have registered for flights home, according to Iraq's consul in Russia, Majid al-Kilani. And 374 boarded one that left Thursday afternoon, Lukashenko's spokesperson Natalya Eismont said.

Authorities say around 7,000 migrants remain in Belarus. 

Iraqi Kurdish migrants said the warehouse where many of the migrants have been moved, and where they were supposed to be able to access mattresses, water, hot meals and medical assistance, was filling up fast, with not enough food or places to sleep.

A video acquired by The Associated Press showed men, women and children at the facility, some sleeping on blankets or sleeping bags on the floor.

"At first, the situation was good, I mean on the first day, we were receiving three meals a day. But as more people came in from the forest, it has got more and more crowded. As a result, we got no dinner yesterday and no lunch today," one young Iraqi Kurdish man said.

"As you can see, it is getting very crowded here, and it is not easy to find a place to sit or to sleep, but it is much better than staying in the forest."

The man, who spoke on condition of anonymity, fearing reprisals, said that everyone in the warehouse "has spent a lot of money to come here, and they don't want to go back."

Strained relations

As the situation at the border spiralled over the past week, the war of words has drawn in the EU and Belarus ally Russia as well.

In the latest salvo, European Union Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson accused Belarus of engaging in "an act of state-sponsored migrant smuggling" and said sanctions and stopping flights to Minsk that carry migrants were "our most effective tools in this struggle."

Foreign ministers of the G7 group of leading industrialized countries also condemned "the Belarus regime's orchestration of irregular migration across its borders" in a statement Thursday.

Eismont, the Lukashenko spokesperson, said that the fact that hundreds of people were leaving Belarus shows that the government is holding up its part of the bargain. The rest are "categorically refusing to fly, but we will work on it," she said.

Earlier this week, according to Eismont, Lukashenko proposed to German Chancellor Angela Merkel that the EU could open a "humanitarian corridor" to allow 2,000 migrants to head to Germany while Belarusian authorities would work on convincing the other 5,000 to return to their home countries.

German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said in Warsaw that suggestions that Germany would be ready to receive some 2,000 migrants is "false information."

Following Merkel's call with Lukashenko on Tuesday, her office stressed the need for humanitarian assistance and for the migrants' safe return home.

Poland criticized by human rights groups

Poland has taken a tough stand against the migrants' illegal entry, reinforcing the border with riot police and troops and making plans to build a tall steel barrier. The Polish approach has largely met with approval from other EU nations, who want to stop a surge of migration.

But Poland also has been criticized by human rights groups and others for pushing migrants back into Belarus and not allowing them to apply for asylum.

In recent days, a melee broke out on the border, with migrants throwing stones at Polish forces massed on their side of the razor-wire fence, injuring 12, and the troops responding with water cannons and tear gas.

Warsaw accused Belarusian forces of instigating the conflict while the government in Minsk denounced Poland's "violent actions."

Lukashenko has rejected accusations of engineering the crisis and said his government has deported about 5,000 illegal migrants from Belarus this fall.

In May, however, he had railed against the EU sanctions imposed on his country for its harsh crackdown on internal dissent, saying: "We were stopping migrants and drugs — now, you will catch them and eat them yourself."

On Thursday, Lukashenko's ally Russian President Vladimir Putin pointed the finger at the rival EU.

"Western countries are using the migration crisis on the Belarusian-Polish border as a new reason for tension in the region that is close to us, for pressure on Minsk, and at the same time they forget their own obligations in the humanitarian sphere," he said.

Election results may be canceled in Berlin

20 Nov, 2021 02:01

People queue in the street outside a polling station to vote during the general elections, in Berlin, Germany,

September 26, 2021. © REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay

Some voters in Germany’s capital, Berlin, may have to re-cast their ballots after the country’s federal election czar filed an official complaint over irregularities in a parliamentary vote held two months ago.

The election – which saw Berliners decide the makeup of the German parliament, the Bundestag, as well as select city representatives – was marred by irregularities at numerous polling stations, according to the official, Georg Thiel. 

Among the most common problems were ballot shortages and long lines, with waiting times of up to two hours. In some cases, voters were also seen casting their ballots past a 6pm cutoff – the time when all polling stations were supposed to have closed. Thiel, who was tasked with overseeing elections at federal level, saw all of the above as reason enough to raise an objection in the German capital, local media reported on Friday.

Thiel identified six Berlin constituencies where irregularities were allegedly rampant, potentially setting the stage for a re-do election in the city.  

It is now up to a special Bundestag committee to examine Thiel’s complaint and see if the reported violations ran afoul of German law or electoral procedures. For the vote to be repeated, however, at least one of those violations would have to be deemed serious enough to have affected the distribution of seats in the Bundestag.

The September 26 election saw outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives take a historic beating, with the Social Democrats coming out on top. The Social Democratic Party (SPD) has been engaged in coalition talks with the Greens and the Free Democratic Party ever since, with the trio expected to announce a preliminary deal as early as next week.

Top EU ministers in quarantine over positive Covid test

22 Nov, 2021 22:27

Belgium's Prime Minister Alexander De Croo (R) and his French counterpart Jean Castex (L) address a

press conference after a bilateral ministerial meeting on November 22, 2021 in Brussels ©  John Thys / AFP

French Prime Minister Jean Castex has tested positive for Covid-19 after returning from a trip to Belgium. Five Belgian ministers, including PM Alexander De Croo, have self-quarantined as a precaution as well.

Castex, who is fully vaccinated, announced on Monday that he tested positive for the virus. He will be quarantined for 10 days but continue to work, his office said in a statement.

The French PM found out his daughter had tested positive for the coronavirus when he returned from Brussels, where he met with De Croo and other ministers. In response to his announcement, five Belgian ministers have entered precautionary quarantine and will be tested on Wednesday, a government spokesperson said. 

Castex, 56, was not yet eligible for booster vaccines French President Emmanuel Macron has advocated as an alternative to lockdowns along the lines implemented by Austria and Germany in response to the rising number of Covid-19 cases on the continent. France currently offers boosters only to those 65 and older, though an advisory body has urged extending them to anyone over 40.

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Military Madness > Canadians Training Neo-Nazis in Ukraine; Austria's Neo-Nazi Arsenal; Latvia Wants NATO Troops at Belarus Border

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Canada checks whether its soldiers train Ukrainian neo-Nazis

9 Nov, 2021 15:04

Azov battalion members at a rally on Volunteer Day. March 14, 2020. © Reuters / Gleb Garanich

Stung by allegations that its troops trained neo-Nazis in Ukraine, Canada’s defense department has launched a review into the vetting process on its “mentoring” and “capacity building” programs for foreign military personnel.

In response to the bombshell accusations, defense department spokesman Dan Le Bouthillier revealed that an internal review had begun last month that will “look holistically at all missions” where the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) are involved with foreign military personnel.

However, he noted that some details would remain secret since “the specifics of the process by which the CAF verifies the suitability of training candidates is subject to operational security restrictions.”

Canada, which has been in Ukraine since 2015 as part of the joint task-force ‘Operation UNIFIER’, provides support and training to Ukrainian security forces. According to media reports, senior Canadian military leadership – including former defense minister Harjit Sajjan – have largely ignored warnings about far-right elements within the Ukrainian forces since then.

I'm thinking there was probably a rather uncomfortable meeting between Sajjan and our uber-Liberal Prime Minister recently.

In June 2018, Canadian diplomats and armed forces officers met and posed for photographs with members of the neo-Nazi Azov Battalion – despite reportedly expressing concerns about the meeting being leaked to the media. The Azov Battalion then used the photo-op for propaganda purposes, according to an Ottawa Citizen report on Monday that cited newly released documents.

According to the paper, Lt. Col. Fraser Auld, then-commander of the task force, had warned that negative press coverage could prompt questions about the meeting from the Canadian government. In 2017, task force officers had apparently been briefed that “multiple members of Azov have described themselves as Nazis.” However, there was no condemnation from the top brass.

The paper revealed another previously unreported meeting in December 2018 attended by then-Canadian Army commander Lt. Gen. Jean-Marc Lanthier and members of the Azov Battalion. Again, there was no denouncement of its radical sympathies. Instead, Chris Henderson, the assistant deputy minister for public affairs at the time, reportedly emailed more than 20 defense department public relations officers about the “need to be ready” for media scrutiny.

In September, a study on the far-right in Ukraine’s military had first revealed that ‘Military Order Centuria,’ a neo-Nazi outfit of soldiers within the country’s National Army Academy linked to the Azov movement, had boasted online about receiving training from Canada and other NATO countries.

Le Bouthillier had previously noted that Canadian military officials had no prior knowledge of those who attended the 2018 meeting, which was apparently organized by Ukrainian authorities. He added that Canada “has not, does not, and will not be providing support to Azov and affiliated entities.”

Despite the announced review, critics told the paper that the CAF does not directly conduct vetting of the foreign troops it trains, leaving the responsibility to the nation providing the troops instead.

And yet, Le Bouthillier swears that Canada has never trained AZOV members. He also stated above, that the selection process is Secret! What selection process?

No wonder the Canadian military is in such trouble - IATT - Idiots at the top!

1,200kg of ammo: Austria busts suspected Nazi stash 

9 Nov, 2021 14:55

© Twitter / Polizei NÖ

Dozens of guns, Nazi memorabilia, and around 1,200 kg of ammunition were discovered by Austria’s domestic security agency and counter-terrorism unit during a house raid on Tuesday.

The arsenal was found at the home of a 53-year-old man from a spa town 26km south of Vienna, who is suspected of having far-right links.

Two illegally-owned machine guns, shotguns, assault and sniper rifles, pistols, pepper spray, tasers, and melee weapons were seized from him, the police said. Many of the firearms were loaded.

The weapons were accompanied by a whopping 1,200 kilograms of various ammunition, as well as a hand grenade, seven pipe bombs, and other pyrotechnic items.

The suspect also owned a vast collection of Nazi memorabilia, including a steel helmet with a swastika, a bust of General Erwin Rommel, medals, coins, magazines, propaganda pamphlets, and other literature.

A provisional gun ban was imposed on the man and his wife while they await charges from the prosecutors.

The investigators are currently looking into their contacts in order track down anyone who assisted them in obtaining so many weapons.

The operation was praised by Austrian Interior Minister Karl Nehammer, who said that “consistent action against right-wing extremism isn’t only part of our historical responsibility, but also a clear advocacy of our democratic coexistence in Austria.”

Latvia warns that NATO could be brought in

to ‘defend’ EU’s border with Belarus

11 Nov, 2021 14:29

A Polish soldier instals barbed wire on the Poland/Belarus border near Kuznica, Poland, in this photograph released by the Polish Defence Ministry, November 9, 2021. © Reuters / Irek Dorozanski

Latvia has cautioned that NATO could be called in to help protect the EU’s eastern border amid a rapidly escalating migrant crisis, with Brussels having accused Belarus of flying in refugees as part of a “hybrid war” campaign.

Speaking to local radio on Thursday, Defense Minister Artis Pabriks said that if Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko chooses to worsen the situation, then “I cannot rule out that even NATO could become involved, because we must defend our borders and will not open them.”

Now, what could possibly go wrong there?

According to him, the ongoing crisis should strengthen the EU’s resolve to build fortified fences along the border with the eastern European nation. In a broadside against the European Commission, he argued that officials were reacting “very slowly” to the stand-off. “If a way to respond faster isn’t found, the people of Europe will take a much dimmer view of the future potential of the EU,” he continued.

The row over the shared frontier has worsened in recent days, with neighboring Poland declaring a state of emergency and deploying thousands of troops, border guards, and police officers in response to a spike in attempted illegal crossings. Warsaw alleges that Belarusian officials are encouraging the crowds to reach the demarcation line, and using force to prevent them from turning back.

Officers deployed pepper spray and riot shields earlier this week to prevent groups of would-be asylum seekers reaching Poland. Several people are reported to have died on the Belarusian side of the border, having been forced to sleep rough in cold weather while attempting to get to safety.

Brussels is reportedly considering a package of economic measures, including against airlines it claims are responsible for ferrying desperate people to Minsk from troubled nations like Iraq, Syria, and Iran.

Lukashenko denies the claim that the worsening situation is retribution for EU sanctions, and has said his government is simply no longer prepared to stop refugees reaching the border.

Did they ever?

According to him, the crisis is one of the West’s own making, after years of foreign intervention. “What are people to do? They will go to Europe,” he insisted.

European Politics > 3,000 Migrants Approach Belarus - Poland Border; Kiev Liberators Called Soulless - Zelensky; Stefan Resigns Again

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EU leadership calls for new sanctions against Belarus

as migrant crisis on Polish border escalates

8 Nov, 2021 19:05

Migrants gather near a barbed wire fence in an attempt to cross the border with Poland in the Grodno region,

Belarus, November 8, 2021. © Reuters / Leonid Scheglov

European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen has called for new sanctions against Belarus citing the migrant situation on Poland. The restrictions are needed to avoid “a humanitarian crisis and ensure safe returns,” she claimed.

The call for sanctions was made late on Monday after the EC chief discussed the ongoing crisis with the Prime Ministers of Belarus’ immediate neighbors – Poland, Lithuania and Latvia.

“I am calling on Member States to finally approve the extended sanctions regime on the Belarusian authorities responsible for this hybrid attack,” von der Leyen said in a statement.

The EU will in particular explore how to sanction, including through blacklisting, third country airlines that are active in human trafficking.

The EU Commission will also reach the UN and “its specialized agencies” to explore the options on “how to prevent a humanitarian crisis from unfolding and to ensure that migrants can be safely returned to their country of origin,” von der Leyen added.

Earlier in the day, at least 3,000 migrants approached the Polish border from the Belarusian side, seeking their way into the EU. The emergence of the crowd was blasted by Polish authorities, which branded it the biggest-ever attempt to enter the country “by force”.

Ukrainian President Zelensky slammed by Jewish MP for branding

Red Army leaders ‘soulless’ in liberating Kiev from Nazis

8 Nov, 2021 12:19

Volodymyr Zelenskiy © Ukrainian Presidential Press Service / Handout via REUTERS

A lawmaker from Ukraine's largest opposition party has hit out at the country's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, over his comments on the anniversary of the liberation of Kiev from Adolf Hitler's forces by the Soviet Union in WWII.

In a statement issued on Saturday, Zelensky wrote that pushing out the Nazi occupation had come at a significant cost in the lives of Ukrainians, and that “human life is of the highest value.” This, he said, should be accepted by “any state, if it really is a state and not a soulless machine for which individuals are just fuel.”

The Red Army’s campaign in 1943, he said, saw “hundreds of thousands of our ancestors thrown into battle for the liberation of Kiev, to die a violent death, mobilized through the Polish Army and not registered with the military to avoid adding to casualty statistics.” Local troops, he said, were poorly equipped, while paying tribute and expressing gratitude toward those who gave their lives.

However, Vadim Rabinovich, a Jewish MP from the Opposition Platform — For Life parliamentary grouping blasted the sentiments in a Facebook post on Sunday. “The text gives the impression that the liberation of Kiev from the occupiers is not a holiday or a victory, but a great grief,” he wrote.

According to him, Zelensky “did not mention the atrocities of the Nazis in the city, but focused on the ‘soullessness’ of the Soviet high command.” In a second statement, issued hours after the first, the Ukrainian president underlined his sentiments saying that the capital’s “liberation is the story of the untold feat of the great soldiers who liberated the city from the Nazis. We will never forget them! We are forever grateful to them.”

It's a little hard to argue with Zelensky when he's talking about senior communist officers, nevertheless, Kiev would be the last holdout for Nazi's if it weren't for those soulless officers. Come to think of it, Kiev might still be the last holdout of the Nazis.

Between 1.2 and 1.6 million people are estimated to have died during the Holocaust in Ukraine, perpetrated by Nazi paramilitary organizations and local collaborators. Earlier this year, the country’s government came under fire from the Israeli ambassador in Kiev, Joel Lion, after thousands of far-right activists marched in honor of Stepan Bandera, a nationalist leader who historians say was implicated in a series of wartime pogroms against Jews and ethnic Poles. “We strongly condemn any glorification of collaborators with the Nazi regime,” Lion said. “It is time for Ukraine to come to terms with its past.”

Biting cold, dying migrants and war of words between EU and Minsk:

Poland-Belarus conflict is getting worse

9 Nov, 2021 21:38

Polish service members guard the area near a barbed wire fence on the Polish-Belarusian border in this handout picture released by the Polish Defence Ministry November 8, 2021. Handout via REUTERS.

The migrant crisis continues at the Poland-Belarus border, with hundreds of people camping in harsh conditions as they seek to get into the EU. But while the weather is getting colder, the rhetoric from both sides is heating up.

The standoff entered into its second day on Tuesday, with asylum seekers camping on the Belarusian side of the border overnight. According to Polish estimates, up to 4,000 people remain at the border, with the largest group amassed near the Kuznica-Bruzhi border crossing.

Some 10,000 more migrants are believed to be elsewhere in Belarus, heading toward the border to try and get into the EU. Poland deployed additional police and troops, as well as assorted military hardware as the migrants tried to take the border by storm, cutting through razor wire and felling trees onto it.

Top Polish authorities said the amassment of troops was absolutely necessary to defend the country and the EU as a whole from the “attack” by the Belarusian “regime.”

“We currently have a camp of migrants who are blocked from the Belarusian side. There are about 1,000 people there, mostly young men. These are aggressive actions that we must repel, fulfilling our obligations as a member of the European Union,” Polish President Andrzej Duda said on Tuesday.

The ongoing military buildup has been criticized by the Belarusian authorities, with President Alexander Lukashenko condemning Warsaw’s actions. He rejected accusations of somehow “attacking” Poland, insisting he was not a “madman” to seek a conflict in the middle of Europe as it could easily spin out of control on any “misstep.”

“To conduct a war with these unfortunate people on the border of Poland with Belarus and move forward columns of tanks – it is clear that this is some kind of training or intimidation,” Lukashenko stated.

The EU, in turn, reiterated its accusations toward the Belarusian leadership of “weaponizing” the migration, with an EU Commission spokesperson stating that Lukashenko is acting like a “gangster” and effectively holding the migrants hostage.

“This is part of the inhuman and really gangster-style approach of the Lukashenko regime that he is lying to people, he is misusing people...and bringing them to Belarus under the false promise of having easy entry into the EU,” the spokesperson said. Earlier, EU Commission boss Ursula von der Leyen urged the bloc’s members to new, “extended sanctions” against Belarus over the ongoing crisis.

Top Polish officials went even further, with Polish PM Mateusz Morawiecki alleging that the migrants amassed at the border were not legit asylum seekers but “human shields” deliberately brought by Minsk to “destabilize” its neighbors and the whole EU. Moreover, the ongoing “hybrid attack” is actually staged by Russian President Vladimir Putin, with Lukashenko being merely a purveyor of Russia’s alleged “neo-imperial” policy.

“The latest attack by Lukashenko, who became an executor, but with Putin as the director in Moscow, shows resolve in the scenario of rebuilding the Russian empire,” the PM claimed.

The migrant situation at the borders between Belarus and its European neighbors has gradually deteriorated over the past few months, after Minsk said it opted to stop turning back people seeking to reach the EU in retaliation to sanctions imposed by the bloc. Brussels, however, has maintained that Belarus has been deliberately stirring up the flow of migrants artificially, a charge that Minsk has consistently denied. Since August, several people attempting to cross the border have died on both sides of it, according to Polish officials.

Temporarily Closed!!!

Sweden's PM formally resigns for second time

10 Nov, 2021 12:29 

Swedish Prime Minsister Stefan Lofven. © AFP / Henrik MONTGOMERY

Sweden's Prime Minister Stefan Lofven has formally resigned from office for the second time, months after a vote of no confidence and political infighting stalled his agenda ahead of the country's upcoming 2022 general election.

Lofven was filmed on Wednesday handing his resignation letter to the speaker of the parliament, Andreas Norlen, marking the end of his seven-year tenure as prime minister.

Back in August, Lofven had announced his intention to resign from office, claiming that he wants to give his successor "the best of conditions" ahead of the 2022 general election.

"The decision has matured over time. I have been party chairman for ten years, prime minister for seven. These years have been amazing. But everything comes to an end," Lofven said.

Throughout the last year, Sweden has been dogged by political infighting that saw Lofven quit as prime minister after losing a vote of no confidence. He was later re-appointed as the country's leader after opposition parties were unable to form a government.

The dispute that led to Lofven's downfall had centered around a debate about housing market policy, which cost the Social Democrats their coalition partner, the Left Party, depriving the government of a majority.

Magdalena Andersson, the finance minister, was recently elected to replace Lofven as the leader of the Social Democrats. Lofven's resignation clears the way for her to become the nation's first female prime minister, if she can secure the backing of a majority of MPs.

It is not clear when a vote will be held in Sweden's parliament on whether to appoint Andersson as Prime Minister. The Center Party has said it will back Andersson's bid to take over from Lofven as the nation's leader. The Left Party and Green Party are expected to do the same.