By Alexander Jokic The decision by Russian President Vladimir Putin to sign a bill that allows “authorities to prosecute foreign non-governmental organizations (NGOs) or firms designated as ‘undesirable’ on national security grounds” is bound to receive a hostile reception in the West. Already Amnesty International” declared that the …
Read More »Israel and the Water Card
By Paul Pillar The New York Times hailed Israel’s ingenuity in addressing its water needs, but played down how Israel exploits its military domination to divert water away from Palestinians and to Israelis, as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar explains. Israel is the object of widespread admiration for its …
Read More »Peace Negotiations or War Preparations? Colombia, Iran, China, Cuba, Ukraine, Yemen and Syria
By Prof. James Petras In Remembrance of Jairo Martinez and Roman Ruiz Fighters and Victims of ‘War through Peace Negotiations’ Introduction On May 21, 2015, the Colombian Air Force (FAC) bombed the base camp of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) killing 26 guerrillas. Three days later the …
Read More »Petty games and flawed logic: The EU/Russia blacklists
By Maria Dubovikova The confrontation between Russia and the West that started over the Ukrainian crisis, having led to mutual sanctions and blacklists, seems to be calming down. Both sides have shown readiness for dialogue and we seemed on the edge of a thaw in relations. However, it …
Read More »New Choice: Chinese Currency Expands to Middle East
The worldwide use of the renminbi would reduce the cost of financial transactions for China by allowing the direct exchange of RMB claims with non-USD currencies. China established the first renminbi clearing center in the Middle East in Qatar in April. The aim of the center is to offer local financial institutions access …
Read More »What if the Original Leader of the Islamic State Never Existed?
By Jay Johnson US foreign policy seems to follow a certain pattern. Deny Deny Deny until it can not be denied and then quietly admit the truth. The war in Iraq was about oil and regime change in Syria is also about energy. A recent DIA document details …
Read More »The Greek Dilemma : The “Big Fix” for Greece and how not to waste a good crisis.
Valbona Zeneli Fortunately for all, the Greek government and the rest of the Eurozone reached an agreement extending the country’s bailout program for four months. This extension will allow all parties to apply clear and critical thinking towards resolving this challenge. However, four months is an incredibly brief …
Read More »Chinese Media Blame Obama’s ‘Crippled’ Policy for Middle East Troubles
The troubles in the Middle East sometimes seem to multiply by the minute as the conflict-ridden region grapples with terrorism and violence that Xinhua blamed on Obama’s “crippled” Middle Eastern policy. “The Islamic State (IS) is gaining an ever stronger foothold that straddles both Iraq and Syria, and …
Read More »Russia’s Strike Back “Sanctions Regime” in Response to US-EU Sanctions. “Moscow’s Travel Blacklist”
By Stephen Lendman Russia issued travel bans against 89 European Union political and military officials in response to imposed 2014 EU sanctions. Affected nations received a list of barred individuals. In 2013, 18 Americans were denied entry in response to US sanctions and visa bans on 18 Russian …
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