(2021-12-17). Congress Passes Massive $778 Billion NDAA. popularresistance.org On Tuesday, the Senate passed the massive $778 billion National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) in a vote of 89 to 10. | The legislation is a compromise version of the NDAA that was already passed by the House and now just needs President Biden's signature to become law. Congress added $25 billion more to the spending bill than Biden requested. | The bill authorizes $740.3 billion for the Pentagon, $27.8 billion for the Energy Department's nuclear weapons program, and $9.9 billion for "Defense-related Activities Outside NDAA Jurisdiction." | In September, the House passed a different version of the NDAA that inc…
(2021-12-17). Red Star Over the Third World w/ Vijay Prashad: Lessons of Soviet History, Part 2. mronline.org 
Russia's October Revolution in 1917 and the rise of Soviet power reverberated across the world, from Latin America to Africa to Asia, and Middle East — that part of the world that lived under the ravages of colonialism and under-development.
(2021-12-17). German Chancellor Scholz's first speech: Praising Merkel, threatening Russia and committing to mass infection. wsws.org The new Chancellor's remarks confirmed the assessment of the WSWS that the programme of the so-called traffic light coalition of SPD (red), Liberals (FDP, yellow) and Greens is a declaration of war on the working class.
(2021-12-17). Tel Aviv Insists on a Radical Solution to Iran's Nuclear Program. journal-neo.org 
On December 10, at the annual Israeli-American Council (IAC) National Summit in Miami, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz met with senior US functionaries about a radical solution to Iran's nuclear program. He warned his American counterpart Lloyd Austin, and US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken that he had ordered the Israel Defense Forces or the …
(2021-12-17). Existential Perils From Iran: Israel's Options in Law and Strategy. moderndiplomacy.eu Abstract: Eleventh-hour diplomacy notwithstanding, few tangible barriers remain in the way of an Iranian nuclear capability. If Israel should decide that it no longer maintains any reasonable self-defense alternative to launching selective military attacks against Iranian hard targets, those preemptive strikes would need to be justified in both strategic andlegal terms. In this article, Professor …
(2021-12-17). China Refutes US Claim Concerning AUKUS Cooperation. telesurenglish.net On Friday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin refuted a U.S. claim concerning Australia-U.K.-U.S. (AUKUS) trilateral nuclear submarine cooperation, urging the three countries not to go ahead with the cooperation. | RELATED: | "Nuclear submarine cooperation under the AUKUS trilateral security partnership poses a serious risk of nuclear proliferation, and clearly violates the objective and purpose of…
(2021-12-16). Flanked by Ukrainian president, NATO chief issues abrasive writ of indictment to Russia. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com Joint press point by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg with the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy Edited. Only Stoltenberg's statements are currently available in transcript form. It's more than a little surprising that Zelensky hasn't been taught English; his generals have been. In the video below his threats are directed against Belarus as well as …
(2021-12-16). Ukraine, Turkey, Azerbaijan form pan-Turkic bloc against Russia in Crimea. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com Zelensky invites President of Azerbaijan to host Kyiv-Ankara-Baku summit in Feb During his working visit to Brussels, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky met with President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, during which they discussed issues of enhancing bilateral cooperation between the countries… It is noted that Zelensky thanked Aliyev for supporting the sovereignty …
(2021-12-16). Max Boot: U.S. should use Ukrainian Insurgent Army, Afghan Mujahideen models against Russia. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com This is in response to an article from Max Boot, who is Jeane J. Kirkpatrick Senior Fellow in National Security Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations and regular contributor to The Washington Post; in fact from that newspaper's edition of December 15 entitled To deter a Russian attack, Ukraine needs to prepare for guerrilla …
(2021-12-16). Russia closer to NATO's eastern flank than ever: Lithuanian president. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com In 1989 NATO's "eastern flank" was a narrow strip of Norway and the Berlin Wall. In 1991 it was a reunified Germany's borders with Poland and then Czechoslovakia. Now it's Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Albania, Croatia, Slovenia, Montenegro, North Macedonia and, with Enhanced Opportunities Partners, Finland, Sweden, Ukraine …
(2021-12-16). U.S., Canadian defense chiefs discuss "Russian aggression" antibellum679354512.wordpress.com The United States and Canada are deeply concerned about Russia's aggressive actions in and around Ukraine. "During their one-hour call, Minister Anand and Secretary Austin discussed key issues of mutual interest between our two nations, including shared concerns regarding Russia's recent aggressive and destabilizing actions in and around Ukraine," reads the news release of the …
(2021-12-16). China-Russia cooperation contributes to world peace, stability. ecns.cn Following the video meeting on Wednesday between the leaders of China and Russia, experts shared their views on China-Russia cooperation, saying that their relations play an important role in sustaining world peace and stability.
(2021-12-16). UN organization confirms hottest Arctic temperature. ecns.cn The World Meteorological Organization has officially recognized a new Arctic temperature record of 38 C in the Russian town of Verkhoyansk, and the agency says it is investigating an unprecedented number of additional extreme weather events that it links to climate change.
(2021-12-16). The Heat: Xi-Putin meeting. america.cgtn.com 
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a video summit on Wednesday. The two leaders discussed a range of major issues including their countries close bilateral ties, security and trade. To discuss: Victor Gao is a current affairs commentator and a Chair Professor …
(2021-12-16). Russian Proposals for Dialogue Have Had No Answer From NATO. telesurenglish.net After numerous proposals by Russia's government for a security dialogue sent to NATO, it has not given a single answer, said Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on Thursday. | RELATED: | "We know what security issues are. This is why we are creating armed forces, calling on our Western partners to engage in talks on ways to make the world a safer and a more stable place, prevent conflicts and resolve issues peacefully," stated the Spokeswoman. | "Ho…
(2021-12-16). US Congress approves massive $770 billion war budget. wsws.org The strategic orientation of the huge military bill is to prepare for war against Russia, China or both. Coupled with Tuesday's vote to raise the debt ceiling, congressional Democrats have satisfied their two main constituencies: the Pentagon and Wall Street.
(2021-12-16). Russian official says Third World War underway in cyberspace. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com Full-blown warfare in cyberspace in progress, says Russian diplomat Full-scale military activities are unfolding in cyberspace, Special Russian Presidential Representative for International Cooperation in Cybersecurity and Director of the Foreign Ministry International Security Department Andrey Krutskikh said at the 9th All-Russian congress of political scientists held at MGIMO University on Thursday. "The war [in cyberspace] …
(2021-12-16). Russia To Build More Soyuz Ships To Develop Space Tourism. telesurenglish.net On Thursday, the director of the Russian space agency Roscosmos Dmitri Rogozin announced that his country will manufacture up to four Soyuz manned spacecraft per year in order to develop the space tourism industry. | RELATED: | He also indicated that Energuía Corporation, Russia's leading manufacturer of rockets and spacecraft, will present a plan to increase production. | After the cancellation of the NASA shutt…
(2021-12-16). Afghanistan's Labyrinth of Opportunity. journal-neo.org 
Four months after the withdrawal of the US and NATO troops from Afghanistan, the Taliban (movement is banned in the Russian Federation) attempts to shape the country on their image, despite the lack of recognition. Nevertheless, they have complete freedom from their neighbors to do whatever they want. They do not officially interfere but try …
(2021-12-16). G7 threats push Russia-China ever closer together. asiatimes.com 
The initiative by Beijing to propose a virtual meeting between President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin, which took place on Wednesday, radically transforms the geopolitics of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) relentless eastward expansion and the Western military deployments on Russia's borders. The announcement of the meeting in Beijing came within a …
(2021-12-16). 89-10: Senate sends record-high $768 billion war budget authorization to White House. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com The Senate vote was 89-10.The House vote was 363-70.It's the highest-ever Pentagon budget in current dollars and the largest since World War II in constant dollars. Russian military spending for 2020 was an estimated $61.7 billion, less than 1/12 of next year's U.S. defense spending. Senate Passes $768 Billion Defense Bill, Sending It to Biden …
(2021-12-16). The Nuclear Weapons Ban Treaty (TPNW): Wishful daydream or historic milestone? moderndiplomacy.eu The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), adopted in 2017, has entered into force on the 22nd of January of this year and the number of ratifying states continues to grow, with Mongolia being the latest to announce its accession. This positive trend is certainly welcomed with enthusiasm by the Civil Society campaigners …
(2021-12-16). 38‚ÑÉ record Arctic temperature confirmed, others likely to follow. moderndiplomacy.eu A new and disturbing high temperature record for the Arctic of 38 degrees Celsius, or just over 100 degrees Fahrenheit, was confirmed by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) on Tuesday. Worryingly, the temperature reading taken last June in the Siberian town of Verkhoyansk — which is located 115 kilometres north of the Arctic Circle — …