February 2014

Is the U.S. Backing Neo-Nazis in Ukraine?
Posted: Wednesday, February 26, 2014

IAEA conduct complicates Iran nuclear deal

Israel, Germany Disagree Over Iran Nuclear Talks
The leaders of Israel and Germany acknowledged Tuesday they don't see eye to eye on how to deal with Iran's nuclear program as negotiations between Tehran and world powers proceed.

Obama Pins Fate of Nuclear Pact on Documents From an Iranian "Curveball"
Obama administration officials insist "possible military dimensions" of Iran's nuclear program must be resolved to the satisfaction of the IAEA to complete a nuclear agreement. But the term refers to discredited intelligence from suspect sources.

US hand in Venezuela crisis?

Doral businessman Jayssam Mokded detained in Venezuela
President of two companies based in Doral is accused of plotting terrorist attacks

Senate GOP demands Iran sanctions vote
Senate Republicans are demanding a vote on new Iran sanctions as part of an unrelated bill.

The Real News speaks to Venezuelanalysis.com founder Gregory Wilpert about the reasons behind the opposition protests in Venezuela.

Real News/Wilpert Part 2: Why is Inflation So High in Venezuela?
I'm Paul Jay in Baltimore. And we're continuing our interview with Gregory Wilpert about the situation in Venezuela.

The Spectacle in Kiev: The Brown Revolution in Ukraine
After a month of confrontation, President Viktor Yanukovych gave in, signed the EC-prepared surrender and escaped their rough revolutionary justice by the skin of his teeth. The ruling party MPs were beaten and dispersed, the communists almost lynched, the opposition have the parliament all to themselves, and they've appointed new ministers and taken over the Ukraine.

Biden at center of US diplomacy with Ukraine
Two days before he fled Ukraine's capital, President Viktor Yanukovych huddled on the phone for more than an hour with Vice President Joe Biden, his primary conduit with the U.S. government throughout the political crisis consuming the former Soviet republic.

Good advice, wrong address: Russia responds to Susan Rice 'no tanks to Ukraine' warning
Russia sees merit in the advice against use of force in Ukraine which US National Security Adviser Susan Rice voiced, but believes it was wrongly directed towards Moscow. Washington would be a more appropriate recipient of the piece of wisdom.

Only Ukraine's people – not Russia or the west – can take it forward
Ukraine is in a mess. And the first steps must be taken not by politicians but by the people, who must honour life and prevent more violence

Ukraine leader warns of separatism threat amid fears over Crimea
Comments come after Russian official says Moscow will act in event of heightened tensions and military movements at port

Infighting Poses Hurdle to Formation of New Coalition in Ukraine
Struggling to form a new majority coalition in Parliament, and under excruciating pressure because of a looming economic calamity, Ukrainian lawmakers decided Tuesday to delay for two days the naming of an acting prime minister and a provisional government.

Will NATO annex Ukraine?
Anyone who believes Washington is deeply enamored of 'democracy' in Ukraine must hit eBay, where Saddam Hussein's WMDs have been found, and are on sale to the highest bidder.

Is the U.S. Backing Neo-Nazis in Ukraine?
Exposing troubling ties in the U.S. to overt Nazi and fascist protesters in Ukraine.

Killing of al Qaida figure in Syria deepens division among extremist rebels

UN Security Council passes Syria aid resolution
Hoping to ease suffering in Syria's besieged cities, the UN Security Council unanimously passed a resolution to boost access for humanitarian aid.

MKs to Shapiro: US taking side of Palestinians in peace talks

Western spy agencies build 'cyber magicians' to manipulate online discourse
Secret units within the 'Five Eyes" global spying network engage in covert online operations that aim to invade, deceive, and control online communities and individuals through the spread of false information and use of ingenious social-science tactics.

What Violent Protests Mean for Venezuela
Posted: Monday, February 17, 2014

Coups, Media and Stalemates: What Violent Protests Mean for Venezuela
The Venezuelan opposition has launched a coup against itself, not against the government. Two strains of the opposition movement are vying for dominance over each other, though they both share the same overarching strategy.

Venezuela Coup? Gunfire, Clashes as 3 Dead in Violent Caracas Protest

Resisting the surveillance state of mind
We must not let the NSA's snooping define a new era in which privacy is a relic

Surveillance revelations: Angela Merkel proposes European network to beat NSA and GCHQ spying
Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany has announced plans to set up a European communications network as part of a broad counter-espionage offensive designed to curb mass surveillance conducted by the US National Security Agency and its British counterpart, GCHQ.

Zarif's 'passivity' on Israel and Holocaust ire Iranian lawmakers
Seventy parliamentarians question foreign minister's 'passivity about the issue of the illegitimate Israeli regime and the Holocaust.'

Stephen Hawking: Syria's war must end

Chomsky: "US and Israel Don't Want To Overthrow Assad!" Video
Israel will be pretty happy to see Syrians kill each other.

Kerry: Assad supporters must press regime to end obstruction
Secretary of state John Kerry has responded to the breakdown of Syria peace talks in Geneva on Saturday, calling on "the regime's supporters" in the international community to press the government of Bashar al-Assad, as "in the end, they will bear responsibility if the regime continues with its intransigence in the talks and its brutal tactics on the ground."

U.S., Syria play blame game over Geneva peace talks
Syrian and American officials traded blame Sunday for the failure of last week's round of Geneva II peace talks, which sought an end to a three-year conflict that has claimed more than 140,000 lives, according to the latest estimates by pro-opposition activists.

Hezbollah vows victory against extremists in Syria

Hezbollah says will quit Syria if Arabs stop meddling

Civilians are dying. Campaigners are being kidnapped. The world cannot turn a blind eye to America's drone attacks in Pakistan
Why was Karim Khan prevented from speaking out against drone warfare?

Pakistani Taliban Expected to Announce Ceasefire on Monday
Group Executes 23 Captured Paramilitaries

The new US-Russia Cold War
Meet the new (cold) war, same as the old (cold) war. Same same, but different. One day, it's the myriad implications of Washington's "pivoting" to Asia - as in the containment of China. The next day, it's the perennial attempt to box Russia in. Never a dull moment in the New Great Game in Eurasia.

The Geopolitics of Ukraine's Schism
Ukraine has been suffering a profound internal schism for some time now, one that is threatening to become one of those ugly civil wars that are occurring in more and more countries. The boundaries of present-day Ukraine include an east-west cleavage that is linguistic, religious, economic, and cultural, each side being close to 50% of the total.

Ukraine protesters and police pull back in contest over president

Ukraine political crisis defused as protesters accept amnesty
Anti-government protesters who have disrupted traffic and official functions in major Ukrainian cities for nearly three months vacated Kiev City Hall and other key state buildings Sunday, defusing the worst crisis to beset the deeply divided former Soviet republic in a decade.

After Yugoslavia, Ukraine?
Public opinion in Western Europe is wrong to regard the Ukrainian crisis as a showdown between Westerners and Russians. In reality, Washington's goal is not to push the country into the arms of the European Union, but to deprive Russia of its historical partners. To do this, the United States is prepared to ignite a new civil war on the continent.

UK residents asked to disclose assets in Cayman
UK residents with financial assets in Cayman are being asked to disclose undeclared income to Britain's revenue office. Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has written to a number of account holders, informing them that they have until September 2016 to declare their details and pay any tax owed to the HMRC, as well as a fine between 10 and 20 percent.

'F**k the EU'
Posted: Tuesday, February 11, 2014

'F**k the EU': Tape Reveals US Runs Ukraine Opposition
In the latest debacle for the US State Department and the Obama Administration, US Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland was caught on tape micro-managing Ukraine opposition party strategies with US Ambassador to Ukraine, Geoffrey Pyatt. That the Ukraine regime-change operation is to some degree being directed from Washington can no longer be denied.

Tomgram: Chase Madar, The Folly of Arming Israel

Bill to block federal funding to universities that boycott Israel

Israeli soldiers pose for photos while abusing Palestinian child
Israeli forces in the eastern occupied Jerusalem village of al-Eizariya were caught on video on Friday posing for trophy photos as they held a wounded, handcuffed Palestinian child in a stranglehold.

EU eyes warmer Cuba ties with push for new accord
The European Union agreed on Monday to launch negotiations with Cuba to increase trade, investment and dialogue on human rights in its most significant diplomatic shift since Brussels lifted sanctions on the communist-ruled country in 2008.

Source: U.S. debating targeted killing of American terror suspect overseas
The Obama administration is in high-level discussions about staging an operation to kill an American citizen involved with al Qaeda and suspected of plotting attacks against the United States, a senior U.S. official tells CNN.

Drone Attack Controversy: Obama Administration Wrestling With Whether To Target U.S. Terror Suspect
An American citizen who is a member of al-Qaida is actively planning attacks against Americans overseas, U.S. officials say, and the Obama administration is wrestling with whether to kill him with a drone strike and how to do so legally under its new stricter targeting policy issued last year.

'We Track 'Em, You Whack 'Em.'
The NSA's Secret Role in the U.S. Assassination Program

The NSA's Secret Role in the U.S. Assassination Program
The National Security Agency is using complex analysis of electronic surveillance, rather than human intelligence, as the primary method to locate targets for lethal drone strikes – an unreliable tactic that results in the deaths of innocent or unidentified people.

Snowden plea bargain speculation played down by ex-CIA and NSA chief
Michael Hayden says he sees little appetite for deal with whistleblower, and portrays US surveillance reforms as limited

Second round of Syria talks makes faltering start
A second round of Syria peace talks got off to a shaky start on Monday with the international mediator meeting the two sides separately after violations of a local cease-fire and an Islamist offensive set back his efforts.

Syrian regime and opposition begin new round of talks in Geneva
UN mediator Lakhdar Brahimi is due to hold separate talks with each side on Monday morning

Russia, China skip Security Council talks on Syria
Russia is blocking Western efforts to push through a Security Council resolution that would raise the prospect of sanctions against Syria unless the government gives unrestricted access to deliver humanitarian aid.

Rouhani says Iran's doors open to UN nuclear watchdog as Tehran unveils centrifuges, missiles
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said Monday that the country's doors are open to the UN's nuclear watchdog even as the Islamic Republic announced two separate technical developments that could potentially give Tehran the capability to create a nuclear weapon.

Legalizing Oppression
The lynching and disbarring of civil rights lawyer Lynne Stewart, who because she has terminal cancer was recently released from prison after serving four years of a 10-year sentence, is a window into the collapse of the American legal system.

Still Locking People Up for Being Poor? Really?! It's 2014.
Debtors' prisons sound like ancient history, right? Unfortunately, they're all too common across the United States. In spite of the Constitution, case law, and common sense, low-income people are routinely jailed in places as far-flung as Georgia and Washington State simply because they cannot afford to pay their court fines.

Regime Change in Kiev
Victoria Nuland Admits: US Has Invested $5 Billion In The Development of Ukrainian, "Democratic Institutions"

EU corruption costs 120 bn euros a year
Posted: Monday, February 3, 2014

"Breathtaking" EU corruption costs 120 bn euros a year
A new report by the EU Commission says that the scale of corruption in the EU is massive. They say it costs the EU around £100 billion every year, but acknowledged the true levels were probably higher. We spoke to Michele Circone, a home affairs spokesman for the European Commission.

Hackers sue Merkel and entire German government over NSA spying
Europe's largest association of hackers has filed a criminal complaint against the German government for aiding foreign spying by NSA and GCHQ, and violating the right to citizens' privacy, basing their case on leaks by whistleblower Edward Snowden.

Kerry Seeks to Calm German Anger at NSA Reports
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Friday that relations with Germany have gone through a "rough patch" recently because of revelations about NSA spying, but insisted that the two countries can put the episode behind them.

Australian government joins international witch-hunt of Edward Snowden

Judges Poised to Hand U.S. Spies the Keys to the Internet
How does the NSA get the private crypto keys that allow it to bulk eavesdrop on some email providers and social networking sites? It's one of the mysteries yet unanswered by the Edward Snowden leaks. But we know that so-called SSL keys are prized by the NSA – understandably, since one tiny 256 byte key can expose millions of people to intelligence collection. And we know that the agency has a specialized group that collects such keys by hook or by crook. That's about it.

U.S. General says more Marines could be based throughout Africa
Marine units that specialize in crisis response could be based in Africa in coming years as military leaders work with host nations that have shown interest in the U.S. posturing troops in their countries, according to a top general in the region.

The Menace of the Military Mind

Poland and Lithuania Haunted by Their Involvement in Hosting CIA Torture Prisons

New details from peace talks: Americans offer parts of Negev to Palestinian refugees
In latest leak from peace talks, report claims US suggests Palestinians get swaths of Negev land in return for settlement blocs. Offer meant to satisfy West Bank Arab leaders, who will be expected to give up idea of having right of return

John Kerry labelled 'anti Semite' for warning of possible boycott of Israel
US Secretary of State has been labelled an 'anti Semite' for warning of a possible economic boycott if Israel fails to reach a peace accord with the Palestinians

US warns Israel over apparent distortion of John Kerry statements
State department says it expects all parties in Middle East peace talks to portray accurately secretary of state's comments

Iran says serious about long-term nuclear deal
Iran's foreign minister said Sunday his country is prepared to move ahead in negotiations over its nuclear program, assuring Western diplomats that Tehran has the political will and good faith to reach a "balanced" long-term agreement.

'Military action likely' if Iran talks fail, US spokeswoman says
A resolution to the nuclear dispute with Tehran, should current diplomatic efforts fail, "is likely to involve military action," US State Department deputy spokeswoman Marie Harf said on Friday.

France sees Iran opportunity if sanctions are lifted: Moscovici

The Year of Iran: Tehran's Challenge to American Hegemony in 2014
In 1979, Iran shocked the world—and directly confronted America's hegemonic ambitions in the Middle East—by charting its own revolutionary course toward participatory Islamist governance and foreign policy independence.

After Failed Geneva Talks, US Steps Up Threats Against Syria
In the wake of last week's failed talks in Geneva, Washington and its allies are escalating pressure on Syria over chemical weapons and professed "humanitarian" concerns.

26 killed in Syria regime barrel bomb raids on Aleppo

Why Al-Qaeda Kicked Out Its Deadly Syria Franchise
After a protracted turf battle, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria finds itself on the outs. That will likely make things even more dangerous

Activists: Car bomb in Syria killed al-Qaida rival
A twin car bombing near the northern Syrian city of Aleppo killed a senior leader of an Islamic rebel brigade opposed to an al-Qaida-linked faction, activists said Sunday.

Preparation fire: Iraqi army kills 50 militants in Fallujah artillery, air strikes

Iraqis seek political solution to avert army attack on Falluja

New Saudi counterterrorism law alarms activists
Saudi Arabia put into effect a sweeping new counterterrorism law Sunday that human rights activists say allows the kingdom to prosecute as a terrorist anyone who demands reform, exposes corruption or otherwise engages in dissent.

Prelude to a Crash
The Fed's easy money policies have pushed margin debt on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) to record levels laying the groundwork for a severe correction or another violent market crash.

Previous Page | Trinicenter Home

Homepage | U.S. Crusade | News Sources | Zimbabwe Special | Venezuela
Back to Top