Daily Archives: August 31, 2020

2020-08-31: News Headlines

Andrew Korybko (2020-08-31). Is Russia Backtracking on China's "Belt and Road" (BRI)? Moscow's Balancing Act Between China and India. globalresearch.ca The critical assessment of China's Belt & Road Initiative (BRI) last month by the influential Director of the Russian Academy of Sciences' Institute of Far Eastern Studies coupled with India's eagerness all summer to court the Eurasian Great Power into …

Ben Norton (2020-08-31). US Sanctions Russian Research Institute that Developed COVID-19 Vaccine. globalresearch.ca Russia won the race to develop the first vaccine against the novel coronavirus. The United States has responded by slapping sanctions on a Russian research facility involved in creating it. | The US government has blacklisted several Russian scientific institutes, including …

RT (2020-08-31). Russiagate without end: US appeals court REVERSES earlier decision to end Flynn criminal case. rt.com A full-bench US federal appeals court has reversed an earlier decision to dismiss the 'Russiagate' case against former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, returning it to the judge who refused to let the charges be dropped. | In a 8-2 ruling on Monday, the DC Circuit Court of Appeals sided with Judge Emmet Sullivan, and sent the case back to him for review. Sullivan had been ordered by a three-judge panel in June to drop the case against Flynn immediately, but hired an attorney and asked for an en banc hearing instead. | Flynn's attorney Sidney Powell said the split was "as expected" based on the tone of…

WSWS (2020-08-31). This week in history: August 31-September 6. wsws.org 25 years ago: French test nuclear bomb in Pacific, setting off protests in Tahiti On September 5, 1995, the French government launched the first in a series of nuclear tests at Moruroa Atoll in the Pacific. Rioting and protests erupted in the Tahitian capital of Papeete in response, where one-third of the population was unemployed.

yenisafak (2020-08-31). Ankara slams terrorist YPG/PKK-affiliated visit to Moscow. yenisafak.com Turkey on Monday slammed a visit to Moscow by a terrorist YPG/PKK-affiliated group, saying Russia should avoid steps that serve the interests of terrorists who threaten both Turkey and Syria."We are concerned that a group consisting of elements of the so-called 'Syrian Democratic Council,' led by the terrorist group PKK/YPG, will be invited to the Russian Federation and accepted at a high level by Russian officials," the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.Reports since the statement indicate the meeting may have already happened."We expect the Russian Federation to act in accordance with the spirit of A…

yenisafak (2020-08-31). Russia expels 3 Slovak diplomats in reciprocal move. yenisafak.com The Russian Foreign Ministry announced on Monday it expelled in a reciprocal move three Slovak diplomats.The decision was conveyed to the Slovak Ambassador in Russia Peter Priputen, the ministry said in a statement on its official website."On Aug. 31, the Russian Foreign Ministry summoned the ambassador of the Slovak Republic to the Russian Federation, Peter Priputen, for a strong protest about the unjustified expulsion of three diplomatic employees of the Russian Embassy in Slovakia in August this year," it said.Moscow considers the step by Bratislava as "unfriendly" and "contrary to the traditional spirit of co…

RT (2020-08-30). France probes senior military officer accused of 'spying for Russia' — suspect worked at NATO command centre. rt.com A French lieutenant colonel has been accused of treason and spying for Russia, French media report. The country's defense minister says the officer is under investigation, insisting that "safeguard measures" have been taken. | The high-profile scandal within the French military — and, potentially, the of whole NATO — was first reported by Europe 1 radio on Sunday. It said the officer, who has been stationed at the alliance's facility in Italy, is suspected of having transmitted "ultra-sensitive" documents to the Russian secret services. | The suspect is reportedly a man in his 50s who's been working…

yenisafak (2020-08-30). Montenegro holds parliamentary polls amid pandemic. yenisafak.com More than half a million voters are expected to cast their ballots on Sunday in Montenegro's fifth parliamentary elections since independence.Candidates from 11 coalitions, six alliances, and five parties are vying for a place in the 81-seat parliament.The main contest is expected between President Milo Djukanovic's pro-West Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), which has ruled the country for 30 years, and the opposition Democratic Front (DF), which leans more towards Russia and Serbia.However, neither of the two is projected to win a majority in parliament.Montenegrins can vote at 1,217 polling stations until 8…

Steven Sahiounie (2020-08-30). The US and Russia Collide, while Syrians Call for US Withdrawal. globalresearch.ca Wednesday's collision between Sheiks and elders of the Arab Al-Uqaydat …

Shane Quinn (2020-08-30). Prior to the Cold War: US Nuclear Plans Entailed Blowing Up Hundreds of Chinese, Soviet and Eastern European Cities. globalresearch.ca On 30 August 1945, Major General Lauris Norstad dispatched a document to his superior, General Leslie Groves, outlining a total of 15 "key Soviet cities" to be struck with US atomic weapons.

Monterey Peace and Justice Center (2020-08-30). Saturday 8/29: The Beginning of the End of Nuclear Weapons. indybay.org Monterey Peace & Justice Center YouTube livestream: www.youtube.com/channel/UCP1w-ymh_t13xi8y4WoYK7Q | Or join in the event via Zoom: us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_k1NGi-bkSaaGulDZ4pUvPw

_____ (2020-08-30). US Sanctions Russian Institute That Developed COVID-19 Vaccine. popularresistance.org Russia won the race to develop the first vaccine against the novel coronavirus. The United States has responded by slapping sanctions on a Russian research facility involved in creating it. | The US government has blacklisted several Russian scientific institutes, including the Russian Defense Ministry's 48th Central Research Institute, which has worked with other non-military medical centers to develop and test the world's first Covid-19 vaccine. | In the midst of the global coronavirus pandemic and a historic economic crisis, Washington has escalated its global campaign of economic warfare, imposing sanctions o…

sputniknews (2020-08-30). Development of Russo-Turkish Cooperation is Important for the Whole World, Istanbul Mayor Says. sputniknews.com This week, a delegation of the Russian-Turkish Business Council (RTBC) and Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu held a meeting led by the Chairman Ahmet Palankoev discussing measures to boost the bilateral trade turnover amid the coronavirus outbreak. The mayor has shed light on potential spheres that could prove lucrative for both sides.

yenisafak (2020-08-30). Lukashenko gets birthday call from Putin as Belarus protests rumble. yenisafak.com Russian President Vladimir Putin used a birthday phone call on Sunday to invite Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko to visit Moscow, a Kremlin show of support as thousands of protesters streamed into central Minsk demanding Lukashenko step down.President Lukashenko, who turned 66 on Sunday, is struggling to contain three weeks of protests and strikes since winning an Aug. 9 election that his opponents say was rigged. He denies electoral fraud and has said the protests are backed from abroad."It was agreed to hold a meeting in Moscow in the coming weeks," the Kremlin said in a statement after the leaders' call.

yenisafak (2020-08-30). Turkey to start space trials of domestic rocket engines, says Erdogan. yenisafak.com Turkey will start space trials of its liquid-propellant rocket engines, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Sunday."I would like to announce the start of the first space trials of domestically developed liquid-propellant rocket engine technology," Erdogan said at the opening ceremony of Turkey's leading defense company Roketsan's production facility and research center in the capital Ankara.Early this year, Erdogan promised the launch of a national space program in 2020 joining the ranks of China, the US, India and Russia.

RT (2020-08-29). In new crackdown, Belarus revokes accreditation for foreign media journalists, deports four Russian citizens. rt.com The Belarusian foreign ministry has withdrawn accreditation from journalists from certain foreign media, a decision which the country's law enforcement agencies have justified on the basis of 'countering extremism.' | Journalists from Western media organizations, such as Reuters and Associated Press, along with state media outlets AFP, BBC, Deutsche Welle and RFE/RL, have been stripped of their right to report, meaning that they could be arrested if caught performing their duties. The majority of these reporters are Belarusian citizens. | In response, British state broadcaster BBC called the move a "stifling o…

RT (2020-08-29). Opposition MP blasts Zelensky after Russian-language songs played at concert celebrating anniversary of Ukrainian Independence. rt.com A Ukrainian opposition MP has accused President Volodymyr Zelensky of imposing a "little Russians" complex on Ukrainians, after the country's Independence Day celebration featured songs performed in the Russian language. | The accusation came from Oleg Sinyutka, a representative of the center-right European Solidarity, an opposition party that supports keeping Ukrainian as the sole official language, despite the country having millions of native Russian speakers. | "What we heard on Sofievskaya Square was the desire of the authorities to impose the 'little Russians' complex on society," Sinyutka said. He claim…

RT (2020-08-29). Ticked off over TikTok stunt: Russian teen faces jail after lighting cigarette in church with candle, Bishop asks for mercy. rt.com Russia's Investigative Committee has opened a criminal case against an 18-year-old after he lit a cigarette using a church candle. The youth posted a video of the incident on TikTok, and could now face a possible prison sentence. | In July 2020, the youngster, along with another teenager, entered a cathedral in Chita, a city in Russia's Far East. In the video, the boy behind the camera can be heard saying: "This will be the crime of the year," before the other lights a cigarette with a candle in the middle of the church. | The teenager is accused of insulting the feelings of believers, and faces a fine of up t…

RT (2020-08-29). 'Pipelines aren't built just to annoy somebody': Former Austrian FM Karin Kneissl believes Nord Stream 2 will be completed. rt.com The joint Russian-German Nord Stream 2 pipeline project is likely to be completed despite all the obstacles, Austria's former FM Karin Kneissl believes. Still, the US will try its best to stop it going ahead, she warned. | Commenting on recent remarks by Chancellor Angela Merkel, who called for the pipeline project not to be politicized, Kneissl said the German leader was absolutely right. Nord Stream 2's construction should proceed regardless of the alleged poisoning of Kremlin critic Alexey Navalny or US opposition to the project. | "As I've said on various occasions, also to my counterparts when I was still…

_____ (2020-08-29). Dem Convention Made No Mention of Russiagate or Impeachment, Because Those Were Fake Things. strategic-culture.org Caitlin JOHNSTONE | Despite their dominating mainstream news cycles for years on end, at no time during the four-day Democratic National Convention was the word "impeachment" ever uttered, nor was any mention made of the Mueller investigation into allegations of collusion between Trump and the Russian government. | Politico Eight months after Democrats mounted a historic effort to remove Donald Trump from office, not a single speaker uttered the word "impeachment" du…

_____ (2020-08-29). U.S. Sanctions Russian Research Institute That Developed Covid-19 Vaccine. strategic-culture.org The US Commerce Department blacklisted a Russian research institute that helped create the world's first Covid-19 vaccine. | Ben NORTON | Russia won the race to develop the first vaccine against the novel coronavirus. The United States has responded by slapping sanctions on a Russian research facility involved in creating it. | The US government has blacklisted several Russian scientific institutes, including the Russian Defense Ministry's 48th Central Research Institute, which has worked with other non-military medical centers to develop and test the world's first Covid-19 vaccine. | In the midst of the global c…

Mehr News Agency (2020-08-29). Iran, Italy discuss expansion of ties. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Aug. 29 (MNA) — Iranian and Italian ambassadors to Russia held a phone conversation on Friday to discuss ways of boosting bilateral ties.

sputniknews (2020-08-29). Russia Presents Device That Detects Toxins, Pathogens Including COVID-19 in Air in Matter of Seconds. sputniknews.com The device, which was first conceived back in 2015, has been perfected over the last five years — and the timing couldn't be better, as countries are lifting their lockdowns while trying to prevent a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic.

Caitlin Johnstone (2020-08-28). Normal Has Failed. Be As Weird As You Like. thealtworld.com Consumerism is unsustainable. Competition is unsustainable. Imperialism is unsustainable. | Our species is standing on the brink of an extinction-level event due to ecosystemic collapse or nuclear war, and it is because of the way that we have lived on this planet up until this point. If we keep moving in this direction we will go the way of the dinosaur in the not-too distant future and take most terrestrial life with us. Maybe even all of it. | The imperfect and immature nature of our newly evolved capacity for language and abstract thought, combined with our social nature as primates, has caused our species to…

RT (2020-08-28). Eternal Post-Soviet language wars rage on: Latvian MP wants more usage of 'hated Russian' but ex-Belarusian leader demands less. rt.com If you spend some time in…

South Front (2020-08-28). Video: US-Russia "Road War" in Northeastern Syria. globalresearch.ca Four US service members were slightly injured during a standoff with the Russian Military Police near the border-town of Al-Malikiyah in the Syrian province of al-Hasakah. According to reports, the US troops received "mild injures" after their MaxxPro MRAP vehicle …

Dmitriy Kovalevich (2020-08-28). Belarus Crisis Through the Lens of Ukraine. globalresearch.ca On August 9, presidential elections were held in Ukraine's neighbor, Belarus. Economically, they are mutually dependent on each other, and Russia is too, but currently it seems as if trade, like flights, could soon be put on hold. Meanwhile, far …

WSWS (2020-08-28). US and Russian military units clash in Syria. wsws.org The northeastern region of Syria has become a tinderbox after Washington revealed its plans to bring in a US company to exploit Syrian oil.

Finian Cunningham (2020-08-28). Trump and Dems take turns playing 'Russian card' — which only proves it's the joker. thealtworld.com As the White House stakes pile up, both sides are playing the "Russian card" and claiming Moscow's interference. Yet at the same time, both sides are apt to deny their opponents' claims of such interference — when it suits them. | And what that proves is the fingering-Russia game is a charade. So, can both the Republicans and the Democrats be simultaneously right and wrong? | President Donald Trump earlier this month

Carla Stea (2020-08-28). "Modern Attilla the Hun" Ravages Iraq, Libya, Yemen, Syria, Iran… China and Russia Block The Momentum, Are They the Next Targets? globalresearch.ca In 1991-1992, just prior to, and following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the US gloated over its global supremacy which, of course guaranteed its unfettered dominance of United Nations agencies, the most powerful of which is the UN Security …

Comitato No Nato No Guerra (2020-08-28). Appeal to the Leaders of the Nine Nuclear Weapon States. globalresearch.ca Initiative of the No War No NATO Campaign: | We, the people of good will, of all walks of life, living on all continents and professing different creeds and religions, direct your attention to the threat of an all-out nuclear war …

Carla Stea (2020-08-28). "Modern Attila the Hun" Ravages Iraq, Libya, Yemen, Syria, Iran… China and Russia Block The Momentum, Are They the Next Targets? globalresearch.ca In 1991-1992, just prior to, and following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the US gloated over its global supremacy which, of course guaranteed its unfettered dominance of United Nations agencies, the most powerful of which is the UN Security …

Comitato No Nato No Guerra (2020-08-28). Apelo Aos Dirigentes Dos Nove Estados Detentores De Armas Nucleares (China, Franàßa, Ândia, Israel, Coreia do Norte, Paquistà£o, Rússia, Reino Unido e Estados Unidos da América). globalresearch.ca Nós, pessoas de boa vontade, de todas as etnias e de todas as classes socioeconómicas, a viver em todos os continentes e a professar credos e religiàµes distintas, dirigimos a vossa atenàßà£o para a ameaàßa de uma guerra nuclear total …

_____ (2020-08-28). Belarus: NATO Lobby Acknowledges That Its Color Revolution Failed. popularresistance.org It is over. The 'patchy strikes' were never real industrial actions. A few journalist of the Belarus state TV went on a strike. They were unceremoniously fired and replaced with Russian journalists. A few hundred workers at the MTZ Minsk Tractor Works did a walk out. But MTZ has 17,000 employees and the 16,500+ who did not walk out know very well why they still have their jobs. Should Lukashenko fall it is highly likely that their state owned company will be sold off for pennies and immediately 'right sized' meaning that most of them would be out of work.

_____ (2020-08-28). Syria: What Actually Happened In Collision Between US And Russian Forces. popularresistance.org On Tuesday, four US service members were reported injured with concussion-like symptoms in an incident involving Russian forces. However, White House National Security Council spokesperson John Ullyot said on Wednesday that the injuries were the fault of the Russians, and that the US service members withdrew to deescalate – a far different story than that told by video footage of the event. | "At approximately 10 a.m. (Syria Time), Aug. 25, a routine Defeat-ISIS Coalition security patrol encountered a Russian military patrol near Dayrick, in northeast Syria. During this interaction, a Russian vehicle struck a Coa…

sputniknews (2020-08-28). Russian FM: US Sanctions on Institute Working on COVID Vaccine Aimed at Promoting Their Own Pharma. sputniknews.com On Wednesday, the US slapped sanctions on five Russian institutes, accusing them of developing chemical and biological weapons. The restrictions were specifically imposed on a research institute of the Russian Defence Ministry that developed the first COVID-19 vaccine together with the Gamaleya Institute.

yenisafak (2020-08-28). Germany would be ready to sanction Russia over Navalny case: Maas. yenisafak.com Germany would be ready to impose diplomatic sanctions against Russia if it concludes that Russian state agencies were behind the poisoning of a critic of President Vladimir Putin, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Friday."Concerning Russia's readiness to clear up the case of (Alexei) Navalny we will act like we did in the case of the Tiergarten murder," Maas said, referring to Germany's expulsion of Russian embassy employees over Moscow's lack of cooperation in a probe into the murder of a Georgian man in a Berlin park.

James Bovard (2020-08-28). FDR's Roosevelt's Fraud at Yalta and the Mirage of the "Good War" counterpunch.org This year is the 75th anniversary of the end of World War Two. One of the biggest frauds of the final stage of that war was the meeting at Yalta of Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and President Franklin Roosevelt. Yalta has become a synonym for the abandonment of oppressed people

South Front (2020-08-27). Video: Russian, Syrian Forces Operation against ISIS Terrorists. globalresearch.ca Russian and Syrian forces eliminated 327 ISIS militants during a joint security operation that took place in the desert areas of Homs and Deir Ezzor from August 18 to August 24. | According to the Russian side, strikes of the Syrian …

Stephen Lendman (2020-08-27). Politicizing Alexey Navalny's Illness. globalresearch.ca Politicized claims that Putin critic Navalny (with scant public support) was poisoned appear greatly exaggerated. | On Tuesday, Moscow's Health Department Bureau of Forensic Medical Examination director Sergey Shigeev explained the following: | "There is a lot of information in the media …

Max Parry (2020-08-27). HBO's 'Welcome to Chechnya' Is Latest Anti-Russian Cold War Propaganda. globalresearch.ca In 2017, explosive allegations first emerged that the authorities of the Chechen Republic were reportedly interning gay men in concentration camps. After a three year period of dormancy, the accusations have resurfaced in a new feature length documentary by HBO …

_____ (2020-08-27). Lebanon: Inconvenient Truths About Syria, Iran, Hezbollah And The Shia 'Street'. popularresistance.org There's been a lot of nonsense passing as truth in post-blast Lebanon reporting. Most centers around alarmism about Hezbollah's nefarious influence, the West's "opportunity" to destroy it, and the supposed struggle with Russia, China, and Iran for paternalist-preeminence in a country that isn't ours (or theirs) to preside over in the first place. There's little discussion in most mainstream reporting on the minor matter of why Hezbollah gained influence in the first place. Shia Muslims are difficult to provoke and almost impossible to suppress once aroused. Long led by a more "quietist" strand of conservative, ap…

_____ (2020-08-27). UK's Johnson Reprises Skripal Saga for Navalny 'Poisoning'. strategic-culture.org Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson is the latest Western leader to wildly jump on the bandwagon claiming that Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny was poisoned, and by implication insinuating the Kremlin had a sinister hand in it. | "The poisoning of Alexei Navalny shocked the world,"

yenisafak (2020-08-27). Putin says alleged mercenaries were lured to Belarus by foreign spy operation. yenisafak.com President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that a group of Russians who were detained in Belarus prior to its Aug. 9 election and accused of being mercenaries had been lured to Belarus by a Ukrainan-U.S. intelligence operation.Belarus had accused the men of seeking to destabilise the country ahead of its election, marking an unusual diplomatic row with close ally Russia. At the time, Russia had said the men were private security workers on their way to a third country."These people, I repeat, were travelling for work to a third country. They were lured there, dragged across the border… It was an operation of Ukr…