2020-06-11: News Headlines

Juan Cole (2020-06-11). Russia shoots down "Ridiculous" Trump demand for Arms Embargo on Tehran. zcomm.org The Neoconservative wing of the Trump administration, which is dying to drag the United States into a war with Iran, suffered an embarrassing setback on Monday when its latest flimsy scheme crashed and burned.

Lucas Leiroz de Almeida (2020-06-11). Nord Stream 2 Trade Geopolitics: Towards a US-Germany "Tariff War". Washington Threatens Germany with Sanctions. globalresearch.ca The United States continues to threaten Germany with sanctions if the European country proceeds with the Nord Stream 2 project — a strategic partnership with Russia to build a large gas pipeline that would facilitate the energy flow between Russia …

_____ (2020-06-11). Trump agitates to restart the global nuclear arms race. truepublica.org.uk By TruePublica: Time Magazine says Donald Trump is both "dangerous, impatient and foolish." EuroNews says Trump — "is a grave danger to the US and the world." The 2017 book entitled — The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump, contains the essays from 27 psychiatrists, psychologists, and other mental health professionals describing the "clear and present …

Olivia Rosane (2020-06-10). Disastrous oil spill ravages pristine Arctic lake. peoplesworld.org A 21,000 tonne (approximately 23,000 U.S. ton) oil spill that prompted Russian President Vladimir Putin to declare an emergency last week has now reached a pristine Arctic lake, and there are concerns it could contaminate the Arctic Ocean. Environmentalists and local officials have raised alarms about the disaster, which they say is the worst of its kind in the Russian Arctic, according …

David Fields (2020-06-10). 'The Ascent': 1970s Soviet film affirms deeply human values in dangerous times. peoplesworld.org The Ascent is not the type of movie you would expect about World War II—or the Great Patriotic War, as it was known in the Soviet Union where the film was made. First, a little background: The Soviet Union generally boosted the heroics of that war in popular culture whenever possible, and for good reason. …

WSWS (2020-06-10). Russia's ruling class nervous over spreading global protests. wsws.org The Kremlin's seeming smugness over the crisis gripping the United States seeks to mask deep-seated fears that similar mass protests could erupt in Russia.

Robert Bridge (2020-06-10). Liberal Leaders Aiding and Abetting Rioters. Just the Latest Campaign Strategy to Usurp Trump. globalresearch.ca In a fractious election year that has already witnessed Russiagate, impeachment and a pandemic, Americans are now forced to contend with the malignant scourge of rioting and looting following the killing of George Floyd at the hands of a white …

teleSUR (2020-06-10). Iran Urges UN to Prevent the US From Extending Sanctions. telesurenglish.net Iran's President Hassan Rohani Wednesday urged members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to curb U.S. attempts to extend sanctions against his country. | RELATED: | Next October, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), a 2015 nuclear deal popularly known as "The Arms Embargo", will be lifted as agreed in the UNSC resolution 2231. | Currently, however, the United States does not recognize this international agre…

Paul Antonopoulos (2020-06-09). Poland Wants to Become Washington's Eastern European Bulwark Against Russia. globalresearch.ca The "Defender Europe 2020" was to be the most ambitious and largest military exercise by the U.S. and NATO since the Cold War. The U.S.-led multinational exercises are undoubtedly hostile actions against Russia. It is through these military exercises that …

T.J. Coles (2020-06-09). Nukes in Space: the Extinction Rebellion Yet to Be. counterpunch.org In January 2017, President Trump ordered the Department of Defense to conduct a Nuclear Posture Review. The document published a year later makes clear that the US possesses nuclear weapons, in part, so that "our diplomats continue to speak from a position of strength on matters of war and peace." The Nuclear Posture Review cites Russia as the evil menace against which the US must defend by renewing its nuclear stockpiles.

Estelle Levresse (2020-06-09). Can the Russian Health Care System Cope With the Coronavirus? thenation.com Can the Russian Health Care System Cope With the Coronavirus?

Paul Antonopoulos (2020-06-08). Russian Diplomats Expelled from Czechia Because of Likely Fake News Story. globalresearch.ca The secret services of Czechia had first informed its government in April that it had damning evidence against two Russian diplomats in the country that would warrant their expulsion. It was alleged, without any evidence given publicly, that Russian diplomats …

Andrea Germanos, staff writer (2020-06-08). 80 Lawmakers Demand Trump Ditch Any Thought of Resuming 'Dangerously Provocative' Nuclear Tests. commondreams.org "When Americans say that they want and need tests, they weren't talking about the nuclear kind." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/trump-testing-nukes.jpg

Andrey Areshev (2020-06-09). Liberal Leaders Aiding and Abetting Rioters Just the Latest Campaign Strategy to Usurp Trump. strategic-culture.org In a fractious election year that has already witnessed Russiagate, impeachment and a pandemic, Americans are now forced to contend with the malignant scourge of rioting and looting following the killing of George Floyd at the hands of a white cop. Now, many Democrats seem content to the let the whole house burn down to achieve some sort of twisted justice . | To get a true sense of the mob mentality that is now leading the United States straight to the abyss, you could do no worse than a visit to the nation's embattled capital. There, District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser recently evicted 1,200 members of the…

Marko Marjanoviƒá (2020-06-11). The Powers That Be Are Ecstatic That the Left Believes the Biggest Problem Right Now Are Statues of Dead White Men. anti-empire.com In the US and the EU both, we've witnessed the biggest monetary heist in history. We're sailing into a depression that central banks have set up for us over the past two decades. And we're doing so in the worst possible condition thanks to the Draconian, harebrained and unnecessary lockdowns that the politicians imposed on us. | Several of Empire's wars and occupations continue in Afghanistan, Somalia, Yemen, and Syria. Tension is being needlessly cultivated with China and Russia, and the entire architecture of nuclear arms control is just about done being thrown in that trash bin of history. | Simultaneously the…

Addison Blu (2020-06-08). Syria Sends Advisors to Aid US Rebels. anti-empire.com WASHINGTON — As the United States works through its immense internal challenges with human rights, equality, and government use of force, Syrian president Bashar al-Assad seeks to help the US in the same way the US helped during the recent Syrian civil war. | "We're sending advisors from our elite special operations units to, you know, help foster peace," Assad told reporters while hiding a smirk. "I can't tell you how valuable it was to have a foreign influence stoking the fires during a period of violent unrest. The least we can do is return the favor." | Assad's aides exchanged high fives in a symbol of…

ahtribune (2020-06-09). SouthFront Is Censored under Cover of Pandemic. ahtribune.com Introducing SouthFront | Where do you find daily news, videos, analysis and maps about the conflict in Syria? Detailed reports about the conflicts in Libya, Yemen and Venezuela? News about the rise of ISIS in Mozambique? Original analysis of events in the US and Russia? SouthFront is unique and influential, reaching a global audience of hundreds of thousands. They have opinion articles but their reports and videos are informational and factual. Their website says, | "SouthFront focuses on issues of international relations, armed conflicts and cri…

RT (2020-06-10). Putin stresses importance of Libya ceasefire in phone call with Erdogan. rt.com Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by phone with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday and stressed the importance of a ceasefire in Libya as soon as possible, the Kremlin's press service said. | The two leaders expressed "mutual concern over the mass armed clashes ongoing in the country," the statement said. Putin also stressed the need for renewed inter-Libyan dialogue. | Discussing Syria, Putin and Erdogan underlined the need to implement Russian-Turkish agreements on the Idlib de-escalation zone. | The presidents discussed joint efforts during the coronavirus pandemic, and noted the…

RT (2020-06-10). Call Russia 'sponsor of TERROR'! Imperial-minded House Republicans urge return to Cold War footing & drastic sanctions policy. rt.com The largest House GOP caucus has released a 'national security strategy' that envisions escalating sanctions against China and Russia, more war on terrorism in the Middle East, and a Cold War-type infowar, among other things. | The 120-page It offers a laundry list of possible actions agains…

RT (2020-06-10). Cracked silo at under-construction UK nuclear plant releases DUST CLOUD after accident. rt.com A silo at Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant in Somerset has suffered structural damage, releasing a cloud of granulated slag into the surrounding area and temporarily halting work on the joint French-Chinese venture. | The 115-foot (35-meter) tower buckled at around 7: 30 am local time on Wednesday. Although initial reports were of an explosion, the smoke was in fact a cloud of Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBS), which was being used to reinforce the concrete, according to a spokesperson with Electricite de France (EDF). | No one was injured and no radiation was released in the incident, according to…

RT (2020-06-09). Austrian court convicts mystery former colonel of 'spying for Russia' — then sets him free. rt.com A year after the "Ibiza Affair" brought down a government in Vienna, Austria has sentenced an unnamed retired Army colonel to three years in prison on charges of being a spy for Russia. | Peter Egger, a spokesman for the court in Salzburg, confirmed the sentence to reporters on Tuesday, but did not disclose the officer's identity. The colonel was first arrested in 2018, with Chancellor Sebastian Kurz personally alleging that the accused had spied for Russia for at least 25 years, since 1992. Later Egger disclosed that the defendant was actually released on parole, after the 18 months served in pre-trial confin…

RT (2020-06-08). Putin praises Egypt's efforts towards Libyan settlement in phone call with President Sisi. rt.com Russian President Vladimir Putin praised Cairo's diplomatic efforts towards Libya's settlement in a telephone conversation with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fatah el-Sisi on Monday, the Kremlin press service said. | The presidents "confirmed a mutual bid towards continuing coordination with an aim to ensure the soonest end of warfare and the launch of intra-Libyan talks under the UN auspices," the Kremlin said. | The phone call was initiated by Egypt. Sisi briefed Putin on the talks in Cairo on June 6 with President of the Libyan House of Representatives Aguila Saleh and Commander of the Libyan National Army…

RT (2020-06-08). WATCH Russian Army SHOOT burning Siberian oil well with anti-tank gun to put out fire. rt.com Russia's Defense Ministry has carried out an unusual operation in Eastern Siberia. Soldiers helped put out a blaze at an oil well by demolishing the burning wellhead with point-blank fire from an anti-tank gun. | Troops from the Central Military District, still wearing their Covid-19 protection masks, can be seen maneuvering the T-12 cannon off a trailer, and positioning it a mere 180 meters (200 yards) away from the target, then repeatedly shooting it with 100mm shells. | The operation, in the Irkutsk region, was carried out "with a jeweler's precision," the Defense Ministry said in a statement accompanying t…

en.mehrnews (2020-06-10). Iran, Russia voice concern over humanitarian crisis in Yemen, Syria. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jun. 10 (MNA) — Iranian Foreign Minister's Senior Assistant for Special Political Affairs Ali Asghar Khaji held a phone conversation with Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin over the humanitarian crisis in Yemen and Syria.

yenisafak (2020-06-11). Cherry season ensues in Idlib, Syria. yenisafak.com Syrian civilians have started harvesting cherries in the Idlib de-escalation zone in the northwest of the country amid relatively secure environment since cease-fire agreement inked between Turkey and Russia on March 5.Idlib is home to hundreds of thousands of cherry trees.However, farmers returning to their homes after the cease-fire have been badly affected by skyrocketing fertilization, tree pruning, transportation and fuel prices."We suffered a lot during the migration period. We returned to our land after the cease-fire. We look forward to this month every year," Syrian farmer Haci Ahmet Muhammad told Anadol…

yenisafak (2020-06-10). Erdogan, Putin discuss Libya, Idlib over phone. yenisafak.com Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday spoke over the phone with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to discuss the latest situation in Libya and Idlib, northwestern Syria.According to the Turkish Communications Directorate, the two leaders also discussed regional issues and steps to be taken in…

yenisafak (2020-06-10). Saudi Arabia records 36 new virus deaths. yenisafak.com A ministry statement said 3,717 new infections and 1,615 recoveries were registered over the past 24 hours.The kingdom's confirmed cases from coronavirus now stand at 112,288, including 819 deaths, and 77,954 recoveries.The pandemic has claimed more than 411,900 lives in 188 countries and regions since originating in China's Wuhan city last December. The US, Brazil and Russia are currently the worst-hit countries.Over 7.26 million cases have been reported worldwide, while more than 3.38 million people have recovered so far, according to figures compiled by the US' Johns Hopkins University.

yenisafak (2020-06-09). Israeli annexation plan 'very dangerous': Russia. yenisafak.com Israel's "dangerous" plans to annex Palestinian territories could provoke further discontent and violence, dooming prospects for a two-state solution, warned a top Russian diplomat on Tuesday.In the near future the new coalition government of Israel "may begin practical steps" to implement its stated plans to annex Palestinian territories, said Mikhail Bogdanov, Russia's deputy foreign minister."We believe that such a development would be very dangerous. We agree with the assessments and warnings in this regard, which are reflected in the latest decisions of the Arab League on this issue."The Arab League has cond…

_____ (2020-06-09). A T-Shirt Sparks Claims That Another 'Foreign Agitator' Is Behind US Racial Unrest. popularresistance.org We've seen various state and federal officials over the past two weeks of George Floyd protests point to a 'foreign hand' stirring the unrest for the purpose of creating deeper instability in American society, already unsettled by months of the coronavirus pandemic crisis. | Of course, the 'nefarious Russians' were the first to be named — with CNN spending a lot of time amplifying this paranoid claim, for example in an interview with Susan Rice a week ago — but Trump administration officials have also named China, accusing Beijing of exploiting US racial tensions with targeted social media activity "c…

_____ (2020-06-09). The Rest Of The World Sees Uprisings, Not Riots. popularresistance.org U.S. officials, whether Democrat or Republican, pretend that only other countries violate human rights. Every year, the State Department issues a report on worldwide human rights with the heaviest criticism aimed at enemies du jour such as China, Russia, and Iran. | Human rights, as defined by U.S. officials, include freedom of the press, maintaining an independent judiciary, and civil rights. But most of the world, the United Nations included, goes further, saying human rights include the right to a job, health care, and housing, among other things. | Not surprisingly, U.S. leaders never mention authoritative in…

Eoin Higgins, staff writer (2020-06-08). Time Served and $25 a Month in Fines in First Sentencing of Kings Bay Plowshares Anti-Nuclear Activists. commondreams.org "I don't apologize for it," said sentenced activist Elizabeth McAlister. "I think the weapons are completely destructive of life." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/kbp_group_2_signs_horiz.jpg

Dr. Paul Craig Roberts (2020-06-08). Russian Academician Arbatov's Washington Leanings, Recommends Moscow to Avoid a Strategic Alliance with China. globalresearch.ca If there were a Russian version of the website PropOrNot, Academician Arbatov could find himself listed there as "American agent/dupe." | Arbatov directs the International Security Center of the Institute of World Economy and International Relations of the Russian Academy of …

Malte Humpert (2020-06-08). The Arctic Northern Sea Route: Russia Conducts Record-Breaking Delivery of LNG to China. globalresearch.ca Russia is one step closer to achieving year-round navigation in the Arctic. An ice-capable tanker made the earliest delivery of LNG to China via the Northern Sea Route. | *** | For the past several years a fleet of fifteen specialized Arc7 …

Paul Craig Roberts (2020-06-08). Russian Academician Arbatov's Washington Leanings. thealtworld.com If there were a Russian version of the website PropOrNot, Academician Arbatov could find himself listed there as "American agent/dupe." | Arbatov directs the International Security Center of the Institute of World Economy and International Relations of the Russian Academy of Sciences. He demonstrates his Washington leanings by his recommendation that Russia avoid a strategic alliance with China. This, of course, is a Washington position. It seems curious coming from a Russian security expert at a time when US foreign policy is dominated by neoconservatives who are hostile to both Russia and China because the two…

WSWS (2020-06-08). This week in history: June 8-14. wsws.org 25 years ago: France ends moratorium on nuclear weapons testing in the PacificOn June 13, 1995, the French government announced that it would resume nuclear weapons testing in the South Pacific. French President Jacques Chirac decided to end the three-year moratorium on nuclear testing, citing France's "higher interests," just shy of the 50th anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima in World War Two—earning himself the hostile label "Hirochirac."

en.mehrnews (2020-06-08). Sticking to JCPOA sole way to tackle nuclear issue: China. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jun. 08 (MNA) — China has criticized the US' policies toward the 2015 nuclear deal (JCPOA) as the main reason behind the nuclear crisis, saying that fulfilling commitments under the historic pact is the sole way to tackle the situation.

yenisafak (2020-06-08). Russia announces relaxation measures. yenisafak.com Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin signed on Monday a decree, relaxing the border restrictions.Russian nationals will be allowed to travel abroad with the purpose of work, study and medical treatment, while the foreigners can enter Russia for medical treatment, Mishustin said at a video-conference with the government members.But the prime minister did not specify when the changes come into effect although the day before the Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviation) has already requested a permission to resume international flights to 15 countries starting July 15.Meanwhile, Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin ann…

Keith Lamb (2020-06-07). George Floyd Is the Spark but Systemic Issues Are the Fuel. globalresearch.ca As a European growing up in the Cold War with the image of America as the land of liberty and freedom the scenes of carnage that we see today are truly saddening. Superficially this is a problem of racial discrimination …