continued from above... Mass murder of Christians in the 21st century. While the threat of Christian persecution was very severe during the 20th century, the 21st is no exception by any means. Currently Boko Haram, ISIS, North Korea, Iran and Indonesia just to name a few. One small report by Amnesty International notes recently about a Christian village wiped out by Boko Haram. " If reports that the town was largely razed to the ground and that hundreds or even as many as 2,000 civilians were killed are true, this marks a disturbing and bloody escalation of Boko Haram’s ongoing onslaught against the civilian population. This is not the only report out there of Christians being killed en-mass. " Sectarian tensions in Indonesia’s Maluku Islands are escalating according to church leaders who report the details of recent atrocities by radical Muslim groups and Indonesian military troops. About 3,000 people, most of them Christians, have died in the past 14 months as a result of religious violence, news reports say. The islands were once mostly Christian, but the Muslim population has increased in recent years with a “radical minority” causing unrest, news reports said. Christian clergy in North Maluku province and the island of Buru claim that ‘jihad troops’ determined to expunge Christians from the areas have slaughtered many believers and burned down churches and homes.” "An Iranian judge sentenced a Christian man to have his lips burnt with a cigarette for eating during the day in the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. The barbaric punishment was carried out in public in a square in the city of Kermanshah. Five other Muslim men were also flogged in public with 70 lashes for not fasting during Ramadan, the city’s deputy governor Ali Ashraf Karami said. "South Korean press cited by The Daily Mail reported that Mr. Kim has charged that the 33 are attempting to overthrow the government — the same accusation that led to the execution of the North Korean leader’s uncle, Jang Song-thaek, and all Mr. Jang’s relatives. Sources : Holomodor Japanese War Crimes Morgenthau’s story __________________ As stated in the above article, the most striking numbers are those of the Christians killed in the Soviet Union (1922-1991). From Wikipedia we have the following confirmation, The total number of Christian victims under the Soviet regime has been estimated to range between 14-22 million.[7][8][9] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persecution_of_Christians_in_the_Soviet_Union But we know that the persecution of Christians began before 1922 in the Soviet Union, the former Russia, it began around 1917. The following is also from the above Wikipedia page, Anti-religious campaign 1917–1921 Main article: USSR anti-religious campaign (1917–1921) and 1922 confiscation of Russian Orthodox Church property In August 1917, following the collapse of the tsarist government, a council of the Russian Orthodox Church reestablished the patriarchate and elected the metropolitan Tikhon as patriarch.[30] In November 1917, within weeks of the revolution, the People's Commissariat for Enlightenment was established, which a month later created the All-Russian Union of Teachers-Internationalists for the purpose of removing religious instruction from school curricula. In order to intensify the anti-religious propaganda in the school system, the Chief Administration for Political Enlightenment (Glavpolitprosvet) was established in November 1920.[31] ...
What's Happening in Syria? Everything You Need to Know About Proxy War Between U.S., Russia, Iran and Turkey By Tom O'Connor On 3/3/18 http://www.newsweek.com/whats-happe...d-know-proxy-war-us-russia-iran-turkey-829412 Violence has continued in all of at least four conflicts raging concurrently in Syria, inflating the death toll of a seven-year war that showed little signs of calming down anytime soon. The state-run Syrian Arab News Agency reported Friday that military helicopters dropped leaflets with instructions on how civilians could exit the besieged Damascus suburb of eastern Ghouta, which has been under the control of rebels and jihadis opposed to the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad since 2013. Backed by Russia and Shiite Muslim militias supported by Iran, the Syrian troops have steadily gained on one of the few pockets of control remaining from the 2011 uprising against Assad. Related: U.S. is losing a top Syria war ally once again, this time to Assad "What is happening at present is biting and taking some villages from the eastern side," a Syrian military commander told Reuters. Western powers have blamed Russia, Syria and Iran for the growing death toll in eastern Ghouta, but the three have pointed the finger at insurgents shelling nearby Damascus and refusing to leave. This standoff at the United Nations, and others before it, have left world powers at a standstill as what began in March 2011 as a series of mass, sectarian demonstrations against Assad in Syria devolved into a multinational conflict with the U.S., Russia, Iran and Turkey among the top foreign forces behind local forces vying for power. Syrian and Russian soldiers are seen at a checkpoint near Al-Wafideen camp in Damascus, March 2, 2018. The Russian and Syrian militaries, as well as a number of local and foreign Iran-backed militias, have helped Syrian President Bashar al-Assad reclaim much of the country, despite Western calls to depose him. Omar Sanadiki/Reuters Syria The Middle Eastern, Mediterranean country has an Arab Sunni Muslim majority with ethnic minorities that included Kurds, Armenians and Turkmen, while Shiite Muslims, Christians and Druze made up the religious minorities. Since 1972, Syria has been headed by the Assad family, members of the Alawite Shiite Muslim sect. After his father's death in 2000, Assad ascended to the head of the country's Baathist government and, for a while, appeared to court the West. As unrest swept the region in 2011, however, Assad cracked down on protests in Syria. Clashes broke out between security forces and an opposition that took up arms. Violence worsened and the Syrian military was forced to cede large parts of the country to rebels and jihadi groups, but these gains have been largely recovered in recent years thanks to assistance from within and without. The United States The U.S. worked closely with Syria to end the civil war in Lebanon in 1990 and in the initial stages of the Iraq War and so-called "War on Terror," but relations have generally been poor. The U.S. and Syria have accused one another of sponsoring terrorism and, when the 2011 protests started, former President Barack Obama backed the opposition. Soon after, the CIA began training and arming rebel groups such as the Free Syrian Army. Turkey and Gulf Arab states, such as Qatar and Saudi Arabia also backed various armed groups. As the Syrian opposition splintered and extremist groups began to dominate, U.S. support waned and recalibrated to independent Kurdish fighters battling a new foe, the Islamic State militant group (ISIS). The U.S. formed an international coalition and began bombing ISIS in 2014. The following year, the Pentagon established the Syrian Democratic Forces, a mostly Kurdish alliance that included Arabs and ethnic minorities. The U.S.-led coalition and Syrian Democratic Forces swept through ISIS territory and claimed victory in October over the jihadi's de facto capital of Raqqa. The U.S.-Kurd relationship has become strained, however, as U.S. NATO ally Turkey invaded the northwestern, Kurd-held Syrian district of Afrin, and the U.S. has not moved to stop it. A U.S. officer, from the U.S.-led coalition, speaks with a fighter from the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) at the site of Turkish airstrikes near the northeastern Syrian Kurdish town of Derik, known as Al-Malikiyah in Arabic, April 25, 2017. A Turkish offensive against the Syrian Kurd-held northwestern district of Afrin prompted Kurds to leave the U.S.-led coalition fighting ISIS in eastern Syria. DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP/Getty Images Russia Syria was a Cold War ally of the Soviet Union, buying Russian arms and giving Moscow a warm water port in the Mediterranean. In 2015, Russia staged a military intervention at Assad's request, ultimately shifting the momentum in the Syrian leader's favor. As the U.S.-led coalition battled ISIS in the north, Russian warplanes helped Syrian troops and pro-Syrian government militias retake key cities from insurgents, including the former commercial capital of Aleppo in late 2016, a development that compelled pro-opposition Turkey to join Russia and Iran's peace efforts the following year. The Russian military also helped Syria reclaim huge chunks of desert from ISIS. The separate offensives of the Russia-backed Syrian military and U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces battling ISIS met in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor. The tense boundaries of control erupted into violence last month when U.S. airstrikes killed up to 100 pro-Syrian government forces, including Russian fighters, in an incident that both sides blamed on one another. Iran Syria and Iran have been close allies since Damascus backed Tehran in the Iran-Iraq War of the 1980s. Fellow enemies of both Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and Israel, they continued to forge ties into the new millennium and the Syrian government became particularly close to Iran-backed Lebanese Shiite Muslim movement Hezbollah. Hezbollah mobilized in support of Assad shortly after violence broke out in Syria and Iran has summoned a number of other Shiite Muslim militias from local fighters as well as foreigners from Afghanistan and Iraq. These irregular forces have been on the frontlines against ISIS and rebels, including in eastern Ghouta, but the U.S. has also accused them of being proxies of Iran's growing footprint in the region. Turkey-backed Syrian rebel fighters hold the Turkish flag (R) and Free Syrian Army flag (L) at a checkpoint in the Syrian town of Azaz on a road leading to Afrin, on February 1, 2018. The joint Turkish and Syrian rebel offensive has complicated both U.S. and Russian interests in Syria. OZAN KOSE/AFP/Getty Images Turkey Syria sought to improve its relationship with northern neighbor Turkey in 1998 when it arrested and extradited Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Öcallan, whose group has waged a decades-long separatist insurgency against Turkey. These ties soon fell out as war erupted in 2011 and Turkey sided with opposition forces. It continued to do so as the U.S. switched support to Kurdish groups such as the People's Protection Units (YPG), which Turkey considered to be a PKK-linked terrorist organization. Turkey has supported the once U.S.-sponsored Free Syrian Army in clashes with the Pentagon-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, of which the YPG was the dominant faction. In January, Turkey launched its so-called "Operation Olive Branch" sending troops and allied Free Syrian Army forces to oust the YPG from the northwestern Syrian border district of Afrin. As the U.S. and Russia chose not to allow mutual partner Turkey to attack, Kurdish forces requested Assad's help in defending Syrian territory and convoys of pro-Syrian government fighters arrived in Afrin last month, forming an unlikely, perhaps temporary alliance of Syrian forces and complicating both the U.S. and Russia's interests in the war-torn country. A map shows areas of control in Syria as of February 22, 2018. The Turkish military and rebel allies have since made gains in Afrin, while the Syrian military, backed by Russia and Iran, has moved in on rebels in Idlib and the eastern Ghouta suburb of Damascus. Institute for the Study of War
Iran’s Zarif Says Meeting with US’s Kerry Not Private TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said his recent meeting with former US secretary of state John Kerry on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference (MSC) was not private. March, 05, 2018 https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/...arif-says-meeting-with-us-s-kerry-not-private “Most of our meetings are not private and we hold talks with the elites of this country (the US) on the sidelines of the international meetings and sessions,” Zarif said on Sunday evening. However, the Iranian top diplomat added, “Currently, we are not in talks with the US administration.” Zarif went on to say that during his meeting with Kerry, he had discussed US President Donald Trump’s plans for the Iran nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and policies to isolate him in the international arena. Trump told the Europeans on Jan. 12 they must agree to “fix the terrible flaws” of the JCPOA or he would re-impose the sanctions Washington lifted as part of that pact. The JCPOA was reached in July 2015 and came into force in January 2016. Since the historic deal was signed in Vienna, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has repeatedly confirmed the Islamic Republic’s compliance with its commitments under the JCPOA, but some other parties, especially the US, have failed to live up to their undertakings. In a recent speech at the Chatham House think tank in London, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs Seyed Abbas Araqchi said even if Trump relents and issues fresh “waivers” to continue suspending anti-Iran sanctions based on the JCPOA, the existing situation is unacceptable for Iran. “If the same policy of confusion and uncertainties about the JCPOA continues, if companies and banks are not working with Iran, we cannot remain in a deal that has no benefit for us,” Araqchi said. “That’s a fact.” World War 3: Iran WILL NOT negotiate with WEST unless Donald Trump SCRAPS nuclear weapons IRAN will not negotiate with the US or Europe over its ballistic missiles unless Donald Trump agrees to dismantle US nuclear weapons, a top Iranian military official said. By Thomas Mackie Sun, Mar 4, 2018 https://www.express.co.uk/news/worl...onald-trump-iran-nuclear-weapons-negotiations GETTY Iran will not negotiate with the US or Europe over its ballistic missiles While Iran has agreed to curb its nuclear energy program if the economic sanctions are lifted, the country has repeatedly refused to discuss its missile program, which both the US and Europe have called for. Iran has continually insisted that their ballistic missiles are necessary as a deterrent and that it is not related to Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers which led to the lifting of sanctions against the country. Iranian Armed Forces spokesman Masoud Jazayeri said: “The condition for negotiating Iran’s missiles is the destruction of the nuclear weapons and long-range missiles of the United States and Europe.” Powers in Europe and Iran have started talks over Tehran’s role in the Middle East and will meet again this month in Italy, in an attempt to prove to President Trump that they are meeting his concerns over the 2015 nuclear deal. Related articles US ramps up pressure on Saudi Arabia to allow aid to Yemen World War 3? Iran could unleash ‘HELL’ and ‘DESTROY all US bases’ Iran confirmed that the Iranian foreign minister had met his former US counterpart John Kerry in Munich last month. It has been reported that Mr Kerry, the former US Secretary of State, had urged Tehran not to abandon a 2015 nuclear deal, despite tensions with the administration of US President Donald Trump. On Friday, it was reported that during a meeting, which is believed to have been attended by others involved in the nuclear deal, “Kerry quietly urged the Iranians not to abandon the deal or violate its terms - whatever the Trump Administration does”. Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi, said that Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif “has always met on the sidelines of such international summits with attending personalities and elites ... in the framework of preserving Iranian interests”. Mr Qasemi said Mr Zarif had met on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference with “John Kerry and Ernest Moniz, foreign and energy ministers of the previous U.S. government, who have a critical attitude towards Trump Administration policies”. The US and Europe have tried on numerous occasions to use the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which is also known as “the nuclear deal,” as a springboard for forcing adjustments to Iran’s missile program. Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister and chief nuclear negotiator Abbas Araghchi said that powers in the west must adhere to the 2015 deal before pressing Tehran to negotiate on other issues. GETTY Iran has continually insisted that their ballistic missiles are necessary as a deterrent Mr Araghchi said last month: “Now they ask Iran to enter discussions on other issues. Our answer is clear: make the [deal] a successful experience and then we discuss other issues,” The US President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to pull the US out of the agreement, describing it as “a very, very bad deal”. In January, President Trump said the US would withdraw from the deal unless its “terrible flaws” are fixed. GETTY Powers in Europe and Iran have started talks over Tehran’s role in the Middle East But Mr Araghchi stated: “The US is trying to pressure us into withdrawing from the nuclear deal, but we will not fall into their trap. “If the US withdraws, no country would hold negotiations with them any longer.” Related articles Russia moves to BLOCK western bid to call out Iran over Yemen weapons President Trump urged to speak with Iranian people Secret Iranian missile solos revealed on border with Israel World War 3 Donald Trump
The bucolic north of Israel is relatively peaceful for now. But the specter of war is looming By Noga Tarnopolsky Mar 02, 2018 Galilee, Israel http://www.latimes.com/la-fg-israel-hezbollah-20180302-story.html The remains of an Israel F-16 in the northern Israeli Kibbutz of Harduf in February after it was downed by Syrian antiaircraft missile — the first air force jet lost by Israel since the Lebanon war in 1982. (Jack Guez / AFP/Getty Images) With emerald green meadows, hillsides terraced with grapevines, and cranes and falcons flying overhead, Galilee looks nothing like a front line. Most weekends, this region in northern Israel resembles an alpine resort in springtime, with tourists crowding into wineries and restaurants, hikers exploring ancient ruins and cyclists swishing by. But war is lapping at this landscape. It seems so close that the Israeli army has already named it: the First Northern War. Since the start of the Syrian civil war in 2011, Israel's northern borders with Lebanon and Syria have been fused into a single hostile realm in which it seems increasingly likely that Israel will be forced to confront its most dangerous enemy: Iran. Israel and Lebanon have been in a formal state of war since the establishment of Israel almost 70 years ago, but their armies have never engaged in battle. Locals are fond of pointing out that until the 1970s, the Israeli-Lebanese border was Israel's quietest. War has broken out here twice. In 1982, Israel fought the Palestinian Liberation Organization. In 2006, the enemy was Hezbollah, Lebanon's Shiite Muslim militia. Iran has turned Hezbollah into the world's most powerful nonstate military force — and its proxy to threaten Israel. It has more than 25,000 active combatants, an equal number of reservists and a growing commitment to keeping Syrian President Bashar Assad in power and helping Iran realize its ambitions for influence in the Middle East. Iran is spending at least $200 million a year arming and maintaining Hezbollah's several thousand troops in Syria, according to U.S. and Israeli officials. Israel's only interventions in the Syrian conflict have been bombing convoys of Iranian-made missiles crossing Syria on their way to Hezbollah bases in Lebanon. Iran is now building missile factories in Syria and Lebanon that Israel has vowed to prevent from going into operation. But Israeli army assessments say that Hezbollah already possesses more than 120,000 missiles and that it "will launch a thousand rockets a day" in any future war. "Hezbollah, Hezbollah, Hezbollah," a senior Israeli officer said describing his assignment in the north. The United States, Israel, Europe and much of the Arab world define it as a terrorist organization, but its political wing forms part of Lebanon's government. The group's bright yellow flags fluttering above outposts in southern Lebanon are visible from several Israeli towns. Hezbollah relies on the Lebanese army's infrastructure as part of its groundwork in southern Lebanon. Yet Israel considers the Lebanese army and Hezbollah to be separate entities. "From my point of view, the Lebanese army is not my enemy," said the Israeli officer, who was not authorized to be quoted by name. "If war breaks out and the Lebanese army doesn't get involved, I won't target it." Last month, Israelis living along the border got a taste of just how such a war could start. One Saturday at dawn, Iran sent a drone from one of its bases in Syria into Israel, which intercepted it and struck back by bombing Iranian and Syrian bases in Syria. Returning from the mission, an Israeli F-16 was downed by Syrian antiaircraft missile — the first air force jet lost by Israel since the 1982 war in Lebanon. This time, the fighting ended with one incident. In a report released this week, Israel said it does not know why the drone was launched, leaving open the possibility that it had accidentally veered into Israeli territory. Galilee has been subject to missile attacks and terrorist incursions from the north for as long as Israelis have been here. Perhaps that is why occasional booms from across the border in Syria have done little to rattle the locals. "I don't personally feel any threat," said Yuval Hargil, the 47-year-old owner of Jullius Craft Distillery. "But yeah, you feel it, that readiness. In recent weeks you see a lot of army around, trucks, soldiers. It's a tense feeling, preparedness, something in the air." Hargil, who was stationed in Lebanon during his regular army service in the late 1980s, now lives in Kibbutz Hanita, a communal village in Israel's far north, and produces prize-winning liquors including Akko — his "Wild Gin of the Galilee." Shimon Guetta, who heads the Maaleh Yosef Regional Council, which encompasses 22 communities, said he doesn't spend much time thinking about the security situation . "It's a serious threat, of course," he said. "The reports we get from the army say it's very volatile these days. But there's not much I can do. For that we have a strong army and a government." The psychological war has already begun. In December, after President Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah addressed tens of thousands in Beirut, telling them his organization was almost done fighting in Syria and would now "give all its time" to combating Israel. "We will be millions of martyrs to sacrifice for Jerusalem," he said, adding that it was "the beginning of the end of Israel." Israeli Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz responded that Lebanon would be bombed "to the Stone Age" if Hezbollah were to attack. Israel's defenses range from a fence equipped with motion sensors to its air force, the most dominant in the region. The newest component is a wall, erected in two sections, meant to deter incursions like the one that sparked the second Lebanon war. In July 2006, Hezbollah fighters attacked two armored Israeli Humvees patrolling the border, killing three soldiers and kidnapping two. Israel retaliated by bombing Hezbollah bases, almost all in southern Lebanese villages. More than 1,200 Lebanese and 165 Israelis were killed in the 33 days of war that followed. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah delivers a televised speech during a ceremony held by the Shiite party in Beirut commemorating the party's killed leaders on Feb. 16, 2018.. (Joseph Eid / AFP/Getty Images) Both Israel and the United Nations say Israel's new wall, which is reportedly 23 feet high and made of reinforced concrete, is built on Israeli land. Lebanon disagrees. Saying his country "doesn't consider the so-called Blue Line" — the internationally recognized border — "to be the final border," President Michel Aoun has denounced construction of the wall as "Israeli aggression." Tension has also escalated over Lebanon's decision to issue public tenders for an offshore oil and gas platform in disputed waters. In a speech last month, Nasrallah warned that his group could attack Israel's gas fields. "If you bomb, we will bomb you…. I promise you, within hours they will cease operating," Nasrallah said. Reporters recently asked the head of Israel's ground forces, Maj. Gen. Yaakov Barak, to define his aim of a "decisive victory" against Hezbollah. He replied: "If we manage to kill Nasrallah in the next war, I would see that as achieving a decisive victory." Meanwhile, the officers on the ground continue to prepare. Lt. Col. Amir Friedman, deputy commander of the Northern Command's Brigade 300, said: "I tell my soldiers they need to be like coils, quiet, but ready to leap at any given moment." Friedman's brigade recently participated in a massive exercise in which armored corps, engineering units, infantry and artillery forces drilled for war and the possibility they would soon be crossing into Lebanon. "Go around here any Saturday, look at the amount of visitors, the crowds, people from every part of Israel, and wow — that's the measure of my success," he said. "If despite all the warnings, despite the news people read, despite the tensions and despite Nasrallah, people feel safe enough to come up north, I've done my job." Tarnopolsky is a special correspondent.
Iran may pull out of the nuclear deal before the US Iran will be forced to withdraw from the historic nuclear deal if it does not gain any economic benefits from it. by Massoumeh Torfeh 1 Mar 2018 https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/iran-pull-nuclear-deal-180301075429532.html US President Donald Trump is making a mistake by putting the historic Iran nuclear deal in jeopardy, writes Torfeh [Reuters] more on Iran Lebanon's Hariri in Riyadh to meet King Salman, Crown Prince MBS 5 days ago Iran's Gonabadi Dervishes: A 'long history' of persecution 5 days ago Russia vetoes resolution blaming Iran for arming Yemen's Houthis 6 days ago Iran warns of 'nuclear crisis' if JCPOA deal is scrapped last week For the first time since a landmark nuclear deal was signed between Iran and six world powers - the US, UK, Russia, France, China, and Germany - in 2015, Iran is rethinking its strategy and possibly planning an exit. On February 22, Iran has given an ultimatum that it will withdraw from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) if it does not benefit economically from it and if major banks, companies and business entities continue to refuse to do business with Iran due to negative statements by the US president, Donald Trump. "We cannot remain in a deal that has no benefits for us," Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs, Abbas Araghchi told Chatham House in London. Araghchi who is close to Iran's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, and was one of the main JCPOA negotiators, accused President Trump of "violating the letter and the spirit" of the deal by creating a "destructive atmosphere". For its part, the US has been threatening for months to quit the deal if its "disastrous flaws" are not fixed. In January, Trump delivered an ultimatum to his European allies: either fix the accord or the US would walk away from it by May 12 when the next US sanctions waiver is due to be ratified. Trump identified three problems with the deal: its failure to address Iran's ballistic missile programme; the terms under which international inspectors can visit suspect Iranian nuclear sites; and the "sunset" clause under which limits on the Iranian nuclear programme start to expire after 10 years. When other parties to the agreement rejected to "fix" these points, claiming they are all outside the boundaries of JCPOA, Trump proposed a hushed-up supplemental agreement that addresses "Iran's development or testing long-range missiles, ensures strong IAEA inspections, and fixes the flaws of the "sunset clause". WATCH 25:10 Could the Iran nuclear deal collapse if US pulls out? Araghchi's speech at the Chatham House was indirectly devoted to explaining why these issues are "illusional". He said the deal is only related to non-proliferation, and that IAEA after nine "tough" inspections had acknowledged Iran's compliance. He also ridiculed the objection to the "sunset clause" saying there is no such clause in the deal. "Iran's commitment to stay away from nuclear weapons is permanent," he said. The Saudi factor President Trump is reportedly entering into a new potentially lucrative atomic energy agreement with Saudi Arabia, which may explain why he is so adamant to tighten the conditions of the Iran deal. According to a report by the Washington Post, the Gulf kingdom is refusing to include in the billion dollar agreement any clauses that would restrict its uranium enrichment capabilities, unless the nuclear deal with its arch foe Iran is tightened. Iran must have received the information on this new initiative from its European and Russian partners and put it together with other reports about cooperation between the US, Saudi Arabia and Israel for isolating Iran out of Syria and Iraq. All indications are that the US would probably never cancel the remaining sanctions and would seek ways of imposing more. Araghchi said this atmosphere of uncertainly was "killing the deal"."It is like poison for the business community that wants to work with Iran," he told Chatham House. In the last two months, a combination of factors has caused deep anxiety in the Islamic Republic. A stagnating economy has led to internal resentments with high youth unemployment feeding onto nationwide protests. And this has been coupled with a barrage of threats and attacks of unilateral action from US officials and Israel. During the week-long nationwide protests in January, Trump's series of tweets sounded like he was calling for regime change in Iran. In Munich, at the security conference Iran's foreign minister, Javad Zarif, signalled Iran's impatience if the US opts out of JCPOA without sanctions relief: "I can assure that if Iran's interests are not secured, Iran will respond, will respond seriously," he said. "I believe it would be a response that means people would be sorry for taking the erroneous action they did," stressed Zarif. Iran would, perhaps, continue to keep to its commitments until May 12, while leaving the door open for further negotiations provided JCPOA is implemented in full and sanctions are lifted by then as specified. Iran would at the same time increase its militarisation to keep guard for potential attacks and invasions. The testing of its ballistic missiles, which it regards as unrelated to JCPOA, will continue as will its plans "to construct naval nuclear propulsion". Iran's leader has called for increased "defensive power". Had JCPOA been implemented in full by now Iran might have been in a more receptive mood. Under the circumstances, the moderate government of President Hassan Rouhani has little choice. It must improve the economy fast if it is to avoid further widespread unrest. Labour protests have continued in several cities across the country. Steel workers have been striking for over a week demanding payment of three months' overdue wages. If the uncertainty over sanctions blocks Iran from improving business and international investment, then it would be forced to seek new partners and new deals, most likely with Russia and China. The danger of that outcome is that Iran would roll back to hardline policies, at the top of which would be leaving JCPOA and returning to its full nuclear programme and an even more autocratic isolationist political structure at home. If that's what President Trump prefers, then he's making a big mistake. The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera's editorial stance.
I forgot to post the following 2 weeks ago... Iran's Zarif says Israel's "myth of invincibility" has crumbled February 18, 2018 Reuters Staff https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-iran-israel/irans-zarif-says-israels-myth-of-invincibility-has-crumbled-idUSKCN1G20H9 MUNICH (Reuters) - Iran’s foreign minister said on Sunday the shooting down of an Israeli jet after it bombed an Iranian site in Syria had shattered Israel’s “so-called invincibility”, reacting to a critical speech delivered earlier by Israel’s premier. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani (R) and Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif attend a meeting with Muslim leaders and scholars in Hyderabad, India, February 15, 2018. REUTERS/Danish Siddiqui “Israel uses aggression as a policy against its neighbors,” Mohammad Javad Zarif told the Munich Security Conference, accusing Israel of“mass reprisals against its neighbors and daily incursions into Syria, Lebanon.” Once the Syrians have the guts to down one of its planes it’s as if a disaster has happened,” Zarif said. He was responding to Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to the conference hours before, in which the Israeli prime minister, holding a piece of what he said was an Iranian drone, accused Iran of trying to impose an“empire” across the Middle East. “What has happened in the past several days is the so-called invincibility (of Israel) has crumbled,” Zarif said of Netanyahu’s remarks, which followed the Feb. 10 downing of an Israeli F-16 jet. Netanyahu had also told the conference:“We will act if necessary not just against Iran’s proxies but against Iran itself.” In an interview with NBC News on the sidelines of the conference, Zarif retorted:“Well, if they try to exercise that threat, they will see the response.” David Ivry, a former Israeli Air Force chief, told Reuters earlier this month he believed it was the first time an Israeli F-16 had been brought down since Israel began using the jets in the 1980s. Anti-aircraft fire downed the jet as it was returning from a bombing raid on Iran-backed positions in Syria. It was one of at least eight Israeli planes despatched in response to what Israel said was an Iranian drone’s incursion into its airspace earlier on that day. The jet was hit by a Syrian anti-aircraft missile and crashed in northern Israel, according to an Israeli official. Reporting by Robin Emmott and Thomas Escritt; Editing by Sandra Maler
Analysis // Satellite Images of Iranian Missile Base in Syria May Signal an Israeli Strike The Fox News report evokes the BBC report from December on a military base for pro-Iranian Shiite militias in Syria. The base was bombed from the air a few weeks later. Amos Harel Mar 03, 2018 https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east...-in-syria-may-signal-israeli-strike-1.5865470 Israeli satellite images reveal: Iran builds military base near Damascus.: Imagesat International (ISI) Iran and the Assad regime are drawing a line in Syria’s skies Israel believes round of hostilities with Iran and Syria is over, but another is all but inevitable Israeli satellite images reveal: Iran builds military base near Damascus Judging by historic precedent, the report Fox News aired Wednesday on the new Iranian military base in Syria is like cocking a gun: it’s the warning before the blast. The same happened in December. A few weeks after the BBC reported based on “Western intelligence” sources, on a base for pro-Iranian Shiite in Syria, the base was bombed from the air. Foreign media attributed the attack to Israel, though Israel as usual declined to comment. The last week has brought more reports about Iran’s establishment in Syria – the deployment of Shiite militias, the presence of military experts, soldiers from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, as well as plans to build bases and weapons factories. First The New York Times published a detailed map showing the Iranian reinforcement, now Fox News reports that the new base near Damascus includes big hangars, that could house missiles capable of hitting anywhere in Israel. >> Thirteen Israeli border points raising tensions with Lebanon Israeli satellite images reveal: Iran builds military base near Damascus.Imagesat International (ISI) Fox News, like the BBC before it, broadcast satellite images of the suspect site. The conservative news network quoted the same opaque Western sources. One may assume that definition is a relatively flexible one, and that it’s perfectly accurate if one reads that as sources located somewhere west of Iran. Irrespective of the sources’ specific identity, Tehran and Damascus are probably taking things seriously and assuming that this is a signal, direct or indirect, from Israel. These reports follow a number of other developments, one being Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s unusual speech last week at the International Security Conference in Munich, Germany, on February 18. There for the first time he threatened a direct hit on Iran and military action against the Assad regime. Another is Netanyahu’s anticipated meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington next month; and when a group of senators returned home from visiting Israel, they stated that the new threats by Iran require the administration to reconsider giving Israel more military aid. Speaking to the Voice of Israel radio on Wednesday morning, Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Israel would not accept Iranian establishment in Lebanon, and certainly not let it position long-range missiles there. The minister however repeated that Israel is not looking for war up north. Most of the Syrian medium- and long-range missiles were used up or destroyed during the seven-year civil war. Iran’s attempts have centered so far mainly on arming Hezbollah and, lately, it’s been trying to improve the accuracy of the Lebanese organization’s guided rockets. Yet assuming that Iran is preparing for future war between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, it makes sense, as far as it’s concerned, to prepare a second front deep inside Syria. That would force the Israeli air force to stretch its aggressive capacities over a wider area, enabling the Iranians and their partners to launch missiles at Israel from a greater distance, even if the Israeli army embarks on a broad ground campaign in Lebanon. The new threat against Iran was issued two and a half weeks after the day of Israeli-Syrian-Iranian fighting on February 10. That day the Israeli army shot down an Iranian drone that had penetrated Israeli territory by Beit She’an; in retaliation, Israel attacked an Iranian command bunker by Tadmor (Palmyra) in central Syria, and the Syrian aerial defense downed an Israeli F-16 fighter jet. Despite the price the parties paid (including Syria, after Israeli jets bombed its antiaircraft batteries in response), the latest report seems to show the parties are continuing to follow their own original plans. Iran continues to increase its assets in Syria, which Israel may target again. The foreign press hasn’t reported any more Israeli bombing raids on Syria since February 10, but senior Israeli sources have already spelled out that the policy of deterrence in the north will continue. In other words, in light of the Fox News report, it's fair to assume that the countdown has started for another aerial clash in the Syrian skies. Even with the parties stating that they do not want war, it will take extraordinary navigational skills to prevent matters from spiraling out of control.
Who could see this coming eh? Q mentioned it several times. There are a bunch of pictures in that article of a laughing, smiling NK leader. http://abcnews.go.com/amp/Internati...oning-nuclear-program-seoul/story?id=53549604 North Korea expressed a willingness to abandon its nuclear program but only if its safety could be guaranteed, South Korea said today. A senior South Korean official who had traveled to the North for historic talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said the North also agreed to meet with South Korean President Moon Jae-in on the country's border next month. Presidential national security director Chung Eui Yong said the North sought to hold talks with the United States and would impose a moratorium on nuclear and missile tests during those talks. The United States has said it would not talk with North Korea unless the North agreed to denuclearize. Chung spoke to reporters after leading a 10-person delegation to Pyongyang, the North Korean capital. The group included South Korea's national intelligence chief Suh Hoon and its unification minister, Cho Myong-gyon. The two-day visit included the first known meeting between Kim and South Korean officials since Kim came to power in 2011. The North sent a high-level delegation to the South during last month's Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. "The North clearly affirmed its commitment to denuclearization in the Korean Peninsula and said it would have no reason to possess nuclear weapons if the safety of its regime [was] guaranteed and [the] military threat against North Korea no longer exists," Chung said. According to Chung, North Korea made clear during the talks that it would not continue nuclear and missile tests as long as dialogue continued. It also pledged not to use nuclear or conventional weapons against the South, he said. “The North expressed its willingness to hold open-minded talks with the United States to discuss denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and normalize North Korea-U.S. relations,” Chung said. The developments may signal a desire by Kim to be seen more seriously and less as a maverick leader of a rogue regime. The news was received well in the South. The Trump administration has repeatedly said it will only engage in direct talks with North Korea if it commits to full denuclearization. On Feb. 23, the U.S. put new sanctions on 27 trading and shipping companies, 28 vessels, and one individual for evading U.S. and United Nations embargoes on trading oil, coal, and other fuel with North Korea. The administration also warned it might even impose a military blockade to stop North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile programs. Vice President Mike Pence, who recently visited South Korea for the Winter Olympics, and who has often taken the Trump administration lead in dealing with North Korea, issued a statement responding to the North Korean diplomatic bid. "Whichever direction talks with North Korea go, we will be firm in our resolve," Pence said. "The United States and our allies remain committed to applying maximum pressure on the Kim regime to end their nuclear program. All options are on the table and our posture toward the regime will not change until we see credible, verifiable, and concrete steps toward denuclearization." Chung also announced that a hotline between Kim and Moon would be installed and that the first phone call would take place before their summit at the end of next month. If the meeting proceeds as planned, it would mark the first time that leaders of the two Koreas have engaged with each other since October 2007, when the late North Korean leader Kim Jong Il -- Kim Jong Un's father -- sat down with then-South Korean president Roh Moo-hyun. Before the summit, the Koreas will hold working-level talks. To maintain an atmosphere of reconciliation and cooperation, the North asked for the South's Taekwondo demonstration team and artists to visit, Seoul said. Chung said the South Korean delegation would brief the United States, China, Japan and Russia on the talks.
Netanyahu attacks Iran and says Trump still set to abandon nuclear deal Israeli PM tells Aipac ‘darkness is descending on our region’ ‘My message is a simple one: we must stop Iran. We will stop Iran’ David Smith Tue 6 Mar 2018 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/mar/06/benjamin-netanyahu-aipac-trump-iran-nuclear Benjamin Netanyahu: ‘President Trump has made it clear that his administration will not accept Iran’s aggression in the region.’ Photograph: Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images Benjamin Netanyahu has warned that “darkness is descending” as Iran expands its sphere of influence in the Middle East. “The force behind so much that is bad is this radical tyranny in Tehran,” the Israeli prime minister told the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Aipac) conference in Washington on Tuesday. “If I have a message for you today, it’s a very simple one: we must stop Iran, we will stop Iran.” Plagued by a corruption scandal at home, Netanyahu is clearly relishing the role of international statesman during a five-day US trip, putting on a united front with Donald Trump on Iran and the recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Netanyahu told Aipac he had warned against the Iran nuclear deal brokered by the Barack Obama administration and claimed vindication. Pointing to a map of the Middle East showing Iran’s alleged dominance, he said: “Darkness is descending on our region. Iran is building an aggressive empire: Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Gaza, Yemen, more to come.” He said Tehran was seeking to build permanent military bases in Syria – where Iranian-backed forces support President Bashar al-Assad in a civil war – and develop factories there and in Lebanon for precision-guided missiles capable of striking Israel. “I will not let that happen,” he said. “We will not let that happen.” Netanyahu and Trump enjoy arguably the closest relationship of any two Israeli and US leaders. Both are also facing politically damaging domestic investigations embroiling their families. Both have dismissed the allegations as “fake news”. The Israeli prime minister – awaiting a decision by Israel’s attorney general on whether to indict him, as police have recommended in two bribery cases – lavished more praise his counterpart on Tuesday. “President Trump has made it clear that his administration will not accept Iran’s aggression in the region,” he said. “He has made clear that he too will never accept a nuclear-armed Iran. That is the right policy. “I salute President Trump on this and the president has also made it clear that if the fatal flaws of the nuclear deal are not fixed he will walk away from the deal and restore sanctions. “Israel will be right there by America’s side and let me tell you, so will other countries in the region.” Both leaders have long spoken out against the Iran nuclear deal, citing its limited duration and the fact it does not cover Iran’s ballistic missile programme or support for anti-Israel militants. Netanyahu also thanked Trump’s team, including the president’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, for their commitment to peace in the Middle East. Kushner’s role has been questioned after his security clearance was downgraded, denying him access to some top-level intelligence, amid revelations over possible conflicts of interest. The pro-Israel lobby group’s conference is an annual display of solidarity addressed by both Republicans and Democrats. Netanyahu basked in applause and paid tribute to a “beautiful alliance” and “eternal bond”. Mitch McConnell, the Republican Senate majority leader, also drew attention to Iran. “The Obama administration’s fealty to the nuclear deal spawned a reluctance to address Iran’s regional ambitions,” he said. “The notion that Sunni powers in the Middle East needed to learn to ‘share the neighborhood’ with Iran created a void. And Iran was happy to exploit that void, menacing our ships and planes deployed to the Persian Gulf.” Netanyahu’s address came a day after he met Trump at the White House and thanked him for recognising Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and pledging to move the US embassy there from Tel Aviv. The US president said he might travel for the opening of the embassy, which he claimed he could get done for a cut-price $250,000, as opposed to an estimate of $1bn.
The following is from almost a month ago but it's related to my post above, Trump questions Israel's interest in making peace February 11, 2018 https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-questions-israels-interest-making-peace-150441371.html President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Shane Bouvet, a campaign volunteer, in the Oval Office of the White House, Friday, Feb. 9, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) JERUSALEM (AP) — President Donald Trump questioned Israel's interest in making peace with the Palestinians in an interview published Sunday, spotlighting its West Bank settlements as a complicating factor. In the interview in the Israel Hayom daily, Trump also cast doubt on the Palestinians' desire to strike a deal. But his comments about Israel mark rare criticism from a president who has publicly sparred with the Palestinians while forging warm ties with Israel ahead of the expected presentation of a U.S. peace outline. "Right now, I would say the Palestinians are not looking to make peace, they are not looking to make peace. And I am not necessarily sure that Israel is looking to make peace. So we are just going to have to see what happens," Trump was quoted as saying. He did not disclose details about the anticipated peace plan. Israel Hayom is owned by American billionaire Sheldon Adelson, a Trump backer and a supporter of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In the interview, Trump criticized Israel's West Bank settlements, which the Palestinians and most of the international community view as illegal obstacles to peace. The Trump White House has been less publicly critical of Israel's settlement building than previous administrations. "The settlements are something that very much complicates and always have complicated making peace, so I think Israel has to be very careful with the settlements," he said. Relations between the U.S. and the Palestinians have spiraled since Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital in December. Since then he has cut U.S. funding to a U.N. agency that assists Palestinian refugees and threatened to withhold aid money to the Palestinians unless they resume negotiations with Israel. The Palestinians, who claim Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem as their capital, saw Trump's announcement as unfairly taking sides with Israel. They say the U.S. is not an honest broker and have pre-emptively rejected any peace proposal presented by the Trump administration. https://hosted.ap.org/republicanher...trump-questions-israels-interest-making-peace
"For when they shall say, peace and security; then shall sudden destruction come upon them, as the pains upon her that is with child, and they shall not escape." [1 Thessalonians 5:3] Could this be the moment when scripture is fulfilled? Trump will accept Kim Jong Un's invitation to meet, White House says South Korea: Trump has agreed to meet Kim Jong Un by May President Trump will accept an invitation by North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un to meet, the White House confirmed Thursday night, in a dramatic development after months of sabre-rattling between the two world leaders. Kim extended an invitation to meet with Trump and the president agreed that the two would meet by May, South Korean National Security Adviser Chung Eui-yong announced at the White House. "President Trump greatly appreciates the nice words of the South Korean delegation and President Moon," White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said. "He will accept the invitation to meet with Kim Jong Un at a place and time to be determined. We look forward to the denuclearization of North Korea. In the meantime, all sanctions and maximum pressure must remain." Earlier Thursday, Chung announced that Trump would meet with Kim to "continue the goal of denuclearization." Kim, Chung said, "expressed his eagerness to meet President Trump as soon as possible," Chung said. "President Trump appreciated the briefing and said he would meet Kim Jong Un by May to achieve permanent denuclearization." Kim, according to Chung, understands that joint military exercises between South Korea and the U.S. will continue. The North Korean leader, according to recent talks with Chung, also claimed to be "commited to denuclearization." "He (Kim) pledged that North Korea will refrain from any further nuclear missile tests," Chung said, adding that Trump's "leadership" and "maximum pressure" brought us "to this juncture." Chung said that "along with President Trump," he is "optimistic of continuing a diplomatic process." But he added that "the pressure will continue until North Korea matches its words with concrete actions." News of the willingness of Kim to meet with Trump follows recent high-profile talks between North Korea and South Korea. Earlier Thursday, Trump announced that South Korea would be making a “major statement” about North Korea at 7 p.m. Eastern time Thursday. Chung met at the White House earlier in the day with National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster. The president made the announcement, in his first-ever visit to the press briefing room, briefly popping his head into the room to update reporters. Chung and other South Korean officials briefed the White House Thursday on a potential diplomatic opening with North Korea after a year of escalating tensions. Chung told reporters Tuesday that he had received a message from North Korea intended for the United States, but did not disclose what it was. The announcement comes after hours of consultations at the White House between administration officials and South Korean officials over the recent talks with North Korea. The dialogue in North Korea concluded with an invitation to the U.S. to reopen direct talks with Pyongyang, saying it would suspend its nuclear tests during such talks. Trump has expressed an openness to the invitation, saying, “We’ll see.” Trump and Kim have had a contentious relationship during the last year as both men dramatically increased the rhetoric against the other amid the backdrop of increased nuclear and missile testing by the North Korean regime. In August Trump warned Kim that, if pressed, the U.S. would unleash “fire, fury and frankly power, the likes of which this world has never seen before.” At the time, the president argued that Kim had "been very threatening beyond a normal state," adding that the regime "best not make any more threats to the United States." However, threats and counter-threats continued into 2018. "The U.S. should know that the button for nuclear weapons is on my table," Kim said during a Jan. 1 speech, according to a translation. "The entire area of the U.S. mainland is within our nuclear strike range," he continued, adding that "the United States can never start a war against me and our country." The next day Trump hit back against Kim by claiming that the U.S. nuclear arsenal was more powerful. "North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un just stated that the 'Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times,'" Trump tweeted. "Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!" The last round of significant talks involving the U.S. and North Korea concluded in 2009. The so-called six-party talks, which involved the U.S., North Korea, South Korea, Japan, Russia and China, ended when North Korea walked out.
The White House already looks like it's backtracking on Trump's meeting with Kim Jong Un Peter Jacobs March 9, 2018 http://www.businessinsider.com/trump-kim-jong-un-north-korea-meeting-white-house-backtracking-2018-3 White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders confirmed conditions to President Donald Trump's potential meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Sanders said that Trump would only take the meeting "on the basis that we have concrete and verifiable steps." Trump appeared to have accepted the invitation to meet on Thursday, according to remarks from South Korea's national security adviser. The White House added conditions to President Donald Trump's potential meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un a day after news of the invitation was confirmed. "The president will not have the meeting without seeing concrete steps and concrete actions take place by North Korea, so the president will actually be getting something," press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Friday. She repeated later in the briefing that Trump would only take the meeting "on the basis that we have concrete and verifiable steps." South Korea's national security adviser, Chung Eui-Yong, made the announcement in front of the White House Thursday night. In his remarks, Chung confirmed Trump said "he would meet Kim Jong Un by May to achieve permanent denuclearization." No exact date or location have been confirmed, according to Sanders. She also did not confirm what kind, if any, preconditions were set for the meeting, which Trump seems to have already committed to. The White House's reaction had North Korea observers questioning if the summit would even take place. "If they're this uncomfortable talking about a prospective summit, it probably means it won't happen by May and may not even happen at all," Ankit Panda, a senior editor at The Diplomat, wrote on Twitter.
I find it pretty interesting that the MSM is all about downplaying the potential meeting with NK now. Im going to go out on a limb and say that it will definitely happen just because they are trying to stop it from taking place.
I think this is the end of North Korea, Iran, and hopefully Cuba. These are dangerous regimes who have abused their citizens to the point of desperation. Even China now is bowing to our terms. Interesting times. I thank Trump for having the guts to try it another way. Getting tough with gangster countries is the only way.
Bringing back our steel industry was brilliant. It has shaken up China. They never thought we would have a President that truly cared for his country. We've been buying China's steel for infrastructure. Who the heck knows what they are sending us. I mean how dumb can this country be. A country needs to produce its own steel, if it wants to survive. If a war breaks with China, how is this country going to be able to defend itself?
Yep, I remember well when it started to become reality and I kept saying to myself how stupid can we be to watch this happen. It was almost as if they deliberately wanted to see the US be taken out of the picture completely. It just goes to show that when all people care about is the love of money and power they will make choices which benefit only themselves. People tried telling me that this was going to be good in the long run for Chinese democracy! We saw how well that worked out with their new emperor for life a few weeks ago.
Less than 5% of our steel imports were from China. 75% of all steel used in us was from us. Tariffs never work and always cost jobs. Did when Bush tried them too.
Rex Tillerson: Russia bears responsibility for Syria chemical attacks US secretary of state says Russia ‘shielding’ Syrian ally, amid reports of fresh gas attack Patrick Wintour Diplomatic editor Tue 23 Jan 2018 Rex Tillerson: Russia responsible for Syria chemical attacks – video Russia bears the ultimate responsibility for suspected chemical weapons attacks committed by the Syrian regime, the US secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, has said. Tillerson’s comments came a day after reports of a fresh chemical weapons attack in the rebel enclave of East Ghouta, which injured more than 20 people, most of them children. Speaking at a conference in Paris on Tuesday aimed at stepping up international pressure on perpetrators of chemical weapons attacks, Tillerson condemned Russia for “shielding” its Syrian ally against punishment for its actions. His remarks came after the US announced last week that its forces will remain in Syria indefinitely, infuriating Moscow. They are also likely to raise tensions ahead of fresh rounds of talks in Vienna and Russia over the next fortnight aiming to find a political solution for the seven-year civil war. “Only yesterday more than 20 civilians, most of them children, were victims of an apparent chlorine gas attack,” Tillerson said of the incident, which left victims struggling to breathe. He added that such attacks “raise serious concerns that Bashar al-Assad may be continuing to use chemical weapons against his own people”. Damascus has been repeatedly accused of using chemical weapons, with the United Nations among those blaming government forces for an April 2017 sarin gas attack on the opposition-held village of Khan Sheikhun which left more than 80 people dead. Tillerson said Russia was in violation of a 2013 agreement it made with the US on the removal of chemical weapons from Syria and is helping the Syrian government to breach the Chemical Weapons Convention, which bans their use. The Paris conference of diplomats from 29 countries had been convened to push for sanctions and criminal charges against the perpetrators of chemical attacks in Syria and other countries. Russia twice used its UN veto in November to prevent an extension of an international expert inquiry into chemical attacks in Syria. Russia denies shielding Syria at the UN, claiming its investigations into chemical weapons attacks in Syria had not produced conclusive evidence and were biased. “Whoever conducted the attacks, Russia ultimately bears responsibility for the victims in East Ghouta and countless other Syrians targeted with chemical weapons, since Russia became involved in Syria,” Tillerson told reporters. “There is simply no denying that Russia, by shielding its Syrian ally, has breached its commitments to the US as a framework guarantor. At a bare minimum, Russia must stop vetoing, or at the very least abstain, from future security council votes on this issue,” he added. Between 2012 and 2017, there were more than 130 reported chemical attacks in Syria, with the majority attributed to the Assad regime. UN inspections have found the Syrian regime culpable in two specific cases, although it was suspected of being responsible for many more. The Islamic State group has also been accused of using mustard gas in Syria and Iraq. Nikki Haley, the US envoy to the UN, said Russia’s actions had “sent a dangerous message to the world – one that not only said chemical weapons use is acceptable, but also that those who use chemical weapons don’t need to be identified or held accountable”. On Tuesday, France also announced it was sanctioning 25 people and companies over their links to Syria’s chemical weapons programme, promising an end to impunity over their use. The list included businesses based in Beirut, Damascus and Paris, and they will now face asset freezes. Tuesday’s Paris summit was largely convened by President Emmanuel Macron in the face of a repeated Russian use of its veto at the UN security council to reject the findings of independent UN inquiries into the use of chemical weapons in Syria. Syrians bury victims of a suspected gas attack in Khan Sheikhun, a rebel-held town in Idlib province, in April 2017. Photograph: Fadi Al-Halabi/AFP/Getty Images Diplomats, mainly from Europe and the Middle East, committed to sharing information and compiling a consolidated list of individuals or entities implicated in the use of chemical weapons in Syria. The west has repeatedly said the use of chemical weapons is a red line that cannot be crossed, but has been haphazard its response to such breaches. “Faced by the recent banalisation of the proliferation and use of these odious arms, it is necessary to act,” the French foreign minister, Jean-Yves Le Drian, told the conference. “On this we will be judged by history.” Andrew Lapsley, an official representing the UK Foreign Office, said it was vital that “a 100-year taboo on the use of chemical weapons was not lost”. The French initiative sets out few plans for how those identified in aiding the use of chemical weapons will be prosecuted. Last summer Carla del Ponte, the veteran war crimes prosecutor, quit the UN Commission of Inquiry into Syria, saying she had no confidence that war crimes in Syria would ever be prosecuted. She was replaced by an Egyptian human rights lawyer, Hanny Megally. Last year, the joint mission created by the UN and the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) found the Syrian regime responsible for the sarin gas attack against Khan Sheikhun village in April 2017, which led to a US Tomahawk missile attack on the Syrian air base that destroyed a fifth of the Syrian air force. The OPCW estimated that the regime did not fully dismantle its chemical weapons stockpiles, despite commitments made in 2013. Russia had stepped in to oversee the destruction after the US and UK held back from airstrikes to punish alleged use of chemical weapons. In a statement last Friday, the Russian foreign ministry said the Syrian government had no motive in using such weapons since it was anyway winning the war. Moscow, backed by Iran and Turkey, has organised talks in the Russian city of Sochi next week aimed at finding a political resolution to the war. That effort is running parallel to talks overseen by the UN, with the latest round due in Vienna on Thursday and Friday. The talks have so far failed to make progress in ending a war that has left more than 340,000 people dead. Tillerson said that “Russia’s failure to resolve the chemical weapons issue in Syria calls into question its relevance to the resolution of the overall crisis.”
I am surprised you would say this Dean. This is globalist blather. Is that why our nations founding fathers used them? Nobody is calling for permanent tariffs, they can surely be used to bring other nations back to the table on trade deals which are a complete joke.
I wonder which it is? Kerry said that all Syrias chemical weapons were destroyed back 2014. A deal he brokered in fact. Obama bragged about it also. Why is it Russia's fault now? https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/07/...emical-weapons-destroyed-its-complicated.html
