BRICS/Meanwhile, BRICS is Alive and Well

19.11.2019, NEO New Eastern Outlook (Russia) https://journal-neo.org/2019/11/19/meanwhile-brics-is-alive-and-well/ 

Vladimir Platov*

There’s been no shortage of interest towards the recently concluded ninth BRICS summit in Brazil. This association brings together a total of five countries, with its name being an acronym coined to represent the combined economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. This block represents 23% of the world’s economic output and some 18% of world trade, with a combined GDP of a mind-boggling 15.435 trillion dollars. However, what is even more important, some may argue, is that it represents 42% of the world’s population.

This year’s summit was held under the motto “Stronger Partnership for a Brighter Future.” This motto pretty much pre-determined heated discussions on the most urgent challenges the international community faces – instability, regional insecurity, the state of the world economy, the state of affairs in trade and finance.

In addition to opening speeches by the leaders of each member state, there was

BRICS, China/Hong Kong Protests: “Return” to the British Empire and the 1842 Treaty of Nanjing… ?

September 25, 2019, Global Research (Canada) https://www.globalresearch.ca/hong-kong-protests-return-to-the-british-empire-and-the-1842-treaty-of-nanjing/5690148

By Manlio Dinucci

Hundreds of young Chinese, in front of the British Consulate in Hong Kong, sing the God Save the Queen and shout “Great Britain Saves Hong Kong”, a rally call in London by 130 parliamentarians who ask that British citizenship be given to residents of the former colony. In this way, Britain is emerging in world public opinion, particularly among young people, as a guarantor of legality and human rights. To do this, History is erased.

It is therefore necessary, before any other consideration, to know the historical episodes which, in the first half of the 19th century, brought the Chinese territory of Hong Kong under British rule.

To penetrate China, then ruled by the Qing dynasty, Britain resorted to the distribution of opium, which it shipped by sea from India where it held the monopoly. The drug market spread rapidly in

Abya Yala*/World usurers prepare to strangle Argentina

2019/09/01, Strategic Culture Fund (Russia) https://www.fondsk.ru/news/2019/09/01/mirovye-rostovschiki-gotovjatsja-dushit-argentinu-48912.html

Valentin KATASONOV

Russia and Argentina may be on one side of the barricades

Argentina is a prime example of what money-lenders can do with a country if the country falls into their network. Today it is difficult to imagine that at the beginning of the twentieth century Argentina was one of the richest countries in the world. She was especially popular during the years of Peron's presidency (1946-1955). At that time, a severe economic reform was carried out in the country in the interests of workers, which limited the appetites of local and foreign capital. As a result, Peron was overthrown by the efforts of the United States.

After that, a military dictatorship was established in the country. In the period 1975-1990. the economy of Argentina was the so-called great depression. Since the late 80s, the domestic political situation seems to have normalized, and liberalization of the state’s economic policy has begun. Reforms were carried out with the active participation of Minister of Economy Domingo Cavallo and IMF advisory assistance. The doors were opened for foreign (primarily American) capital, the markets were completely deregulated, all barriers to merchandise imports were removed, the currency management regime was

Mercosul/How Bolsonaro Is Maintaining Brazil’s Exploitation at Local and International Levels

August 5, 2019, Strategic Culture Foundation (Russia) https://www.strategic-culture.org/news/2019/08/05/how-bolsonaro-maintaining-brazils-exploitation-local-international-levels/

  

Ramona Wadi*

Despite pleas for protection against miners invading their territory, the indigenous tribes are unlikely to find recourse from the authorities. Bolsonaro has stated his decision to open natural reserves for exploitation as the reason behind what he terms “approximation with the United States.”

The constant declarations by Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro to open the Amazon for natural resources exploitation is putting both land and indigenous communities in peril. On Saturday, the Waiãpi indigenous reserve was invaded by a group of heavily armed miners. Earlier in the week, indigenous leader Emyra Waiãpi was stabbed to death. The indigenous tribes are pointing towards Bolsonaro as the instigator and enabler of violence targeting their people.

Despite pleas for protection against miners invading their territory, the indigenous tribes are unlikely to find recourse from the authorities. Bolsonaro has stated his decision to open natural reserves for exploitation as the reason behind what he terms “approximation with the United States.”

A recent study has attributed the destruction of Brazil’s environmental policy to Bolsonaro and the political power of the ruralists – an influential agribusiness association in Brazil which favours the dispossession of indigenous people from their land. Under Bolsonaro, ruralists and former generals

Provoking Iran Could Start a War and Crash the Entire World Economy

June 23, 2019, Strategic Culture Foundation https://www.strategic-culture.org (Russia) https://www.strategic-culture.org/news/2019/06/23/provoking-iran-could-start-a-war-and-crash-the-entire-world-economy/

Federico Pieraccini*

Tensions in the Persian Gulf are reaching a point of no return. In recent weeks, six oil tankers have been subjected to Israeli sabotage disguised to look like Iranian attacks to induce the United States to take military action against the Islamic Republic. Some days ago Iran rightfully shot out of the sky a US Drone. In Yemen, the Houthis have finally started responding with cruise and ballistic missiles to the Saudis’ indiscriminate attacks, causing damage to the Saudi international airport of Abha, as well as blocking, through explosive drones, Saudi oil transportation from east to west through one of the largest pipelines in the world.

As if the political and military situation at this time were not tense and complex enough, the two most important power groups in the United States, the Fed and the military-industrial complex, both face problems that threaten to diminish Washington’s status as a world superpower.

The Fed could find itself defending the role of the US dollar as the world reserve currency during any conflict in the Persian Gulf that would see the cost of oil rise to $300 a barrel, threatening trillions of dollars in derivatives and toppling the global economy.

The military-industrial complex would in turn be involved in a war that it would struggle to contain and even win, destroying the United States’ image of invincibility and inflicting a mortal blow on its ability to project power to the four corners of the world.

Just look at how surprised US officials were about Iran’s capabilities to shot down an

29.07.16 Situation Report & news: 1- Donetsk Defense, 2- US imported 2,5 thousand rifles, 3- Russia’s envoy urges OSCE…

DONi Donbass International News Agency https://dninews.com (Donbass)

1- Donetsk Defense: Weekly Situation Report, 29.07.16 (Video and map)

2- US imported 2,5 thousand rifles, machine guns to Ukraine “for the sake of peace”

3- Russia’s envoy urges OSCE to monitor situation in Ukraine more closely

---------

1- Donetsk Defense: Weekly Situation Report, 29.07.16 (Video and map)

Friday, July 29, 2016, DONi Donbass International News Agency https://dninews.com (Donbass)

Friday, July 29, 2016 - 15:45

Good afternoon! Today I will again sum up the events of the past week.

In the period from 23 to 29 July, all activities in the DPR People's Militia units were carried out according to the plan of combat training.

Since the beginning of 2016 the AFU have violated the ceasefire 7,294 times.

Over the past month the number od violations was 1,397 times.

Over the past week the Ukrainian military continued to shell the territory of

Ukraine/INTELLIGENCE BRIEFING: KNOW YOUR NAZIS

July 5, 2016, DONi Donbass International News Agency https://dninews.com (Donbass)

  One would think that the example of 25 million Russians, and 6 million of that Ukrainians killed in WWII would be enough of a historical lesson for future generations of Ukrainians to be afraid of a repetition of the horrors of Nazi crimes upon it's residents. But in today's US controlled political environment, what was in the past is now the reality of the present.

  The post war history of Nazis in the Ukraine did not end in 1945. The United States, UK and Canada imported the entire 14th Waffen SS Division "Galicia" to live in North America and were a key source of anti-Soviet manpower during the cold war.Ukrainian Nazi veterans started

BRICS/Meeting of Russian Federation ambassadors and permanent envoys/Совещание послов и постоянных представителей Российской Федерации

June 30, 2016, Kremlin Кремль http://kremlin.ru (Россия)

Vladimir Putin addressed the eighth meeting of Russian Federation ambassadors and permanent envoys at the Russian Foreign Ministry.

President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Colleagues, it is a pleasure to greet you all at this traditional gathering at the Foreign Ministry. Let me start by thanking the Foreign Ministry’s heads and staff and everyone working in our missions abroad for their professionalism and devotion to their work. I am sure that you will all continue to work in the same well-coordinated and effective fashion.

Russia follows an independent foreign policy and seeks to develop open and honest relations with all countries, in the west, east, south and north. Russia seeks mutually advantageous and constructive ties in the broadest range of areas. We do not impose our will or our values on others and we fully comply with the provisions of international law and consistently uphold the key role of the United Nations and its Security Council in resolving global and regional problems.

As you know, the world today is far from stable and the situation is becoming less predictable all the time. Great change is taking place in all areas of international relations. Competition for influence and resources is increasing. At the same time, we see confrontation between different visions of how to build the

BRICS, БРИКС, 金砖五国/APPEAL TO CHINA AND RUSSIA: PLEASE DO NOT LET VENEZUELA FALL!

June 13, 2016, Global Research http://www.globalresearch.ca (Canada)

By Andre Vltchek*

Open Letter to Presidents Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin

Dear Mr. President Xi Jinping,

Dear Mr. President Vladimir Putin,

The re-emerging specter of nuclear catastrophe is once again haunting the world.

The West is trying to isolate and provoke two great, proud, powerful and sovereign countries; China and Russia. It appears that the pathological desire to gain (or more precisely, re-gain) full control over the entire world is fully restraining all remaining flickers of rationale and humanism inside the brains of the politicians and business ‘elites’ in Washington, London and elsewhere.

The danger is real. It is enough to take a brief look at the map depicting the world at the beginning of the 20^th Century, to realize that the West is capable of enslaving almost the entire Planet, by forcing through its colonialist and imperialist designs.

Western imperialism has already exterminated hundreds of millions of human beings, in all corners of the globe. And even now, it is still murdering millions, directly and indirectly.

Both China and Russia experienced the horrors of Western invasions. On several occasions, both nations had to turn to steel, in order to resist and

15 SIGNS OBAMA WILL GO TO WAR WITH SYRIA

August 26, 2013, PressTV http://www.presstv.ir (Iran)

Michael Snyder, Economic Collapse

The Obama administration is actually considering an attack on Syria even though the American people are overwhelmingly against it, Obama does not have Congressional approval to start a war, and he will never get approval for military action from the UN because it will be blocked by Russia. This is setting up to become a colossal foreign policy disaster for the United States.

A potential war with Syria has been brought to the forefront because of a chemical weapons attack near Damascus last week that killed as many as 1,400 people. The Obama administration and several other western nations are blaming this attack on the Assad regime.

But others are pointing out that it would make absolutely no sense for the Assad regime to do such a thing. They appear to be winning the civil war,

Chávez Presents Obama with «Open Veins of Latin America»

PLEASE FORWARD WIDELY

20 abril 2009/Monthly Review http://monthlyreview.org

Dear Friend of Monthly Review:

You may have heard that this past weekend, President of Venezuela Hugo Chávez presented U.S. president Barack Obama with a classic title from Monthly Review Press: Eduardo Galeano’s Open Veins of Latin America. (See this article from The Guardian.)

This is an important text from one of Latin America’s most renowned writers, and we are happy to see it making headlines. If you would like to order a copy, please visit our website or call 800.670.9499. Whether you are rediscovering this wonderful book or reading it for the first time, you will find Open Veins of Latin America both insightful and inspiring. Our edition includes a foreword by acclaimed novelist Isabel Allende.

As an independent, not-for-profit publisher, Monthly Review Press relies completely on the support of our readers. Since 1952 we have published some of the most important voices in the struggle for socialism and against imperialism. You can support us today by buying our books directly through our website and encouraging others to do so as well.

Kind regards,

The Monthly Review Staff
---------------------------------

Open Veins of Latin America
Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent
by Eduardo Galeano
Foreword by Isabel Allende. Translated by Cedric Belfrage

TO ORDER, Click Here, or call 800.670.9499
“A superbly written, excellently translated, and powerfully persuasive expose which all students of Latin American and U.S. history must read.”

—CHOICE

Since its U.S. debut a quarter-century ago, this brilliant text has set a new standard for historical scholarship of Latin America. It is also an outstanding political economy, a social and cultural narrative of the highest quality, and perhaps the finest description of primitive capital accumulation since Marx.

Rather than chronology, geography, or political successions, Eduardo Galeano has organized the various facets of Latin American history according to the patterns of five centuries of exploitation. Thus he is concerned with gold and silver, cacao and cotton, rubber and coffee, fruit, hides and wool, petroleum, iron, nickel, manganese, copper, aluminum ore, nitrates, and tin. These are the veins which he traces through the body of the entire continent, up to the Rio Grande and throughout the Caribbean, and all the way to their open ends where they empty into the coffers of wealth in the United States and Europe.

Weaving fact and imagery into a rich tapestry, Galeano fuses scientific analysis with the passions of a plundered and suffering people. An immense gathering of materials is framed with a vigorous style that never falters in its command of themes. All readers interested in great historical, economic, political, and social writing will find a singular analytical achievement, and an overwhelming narrative that makes history speak, unforgettably.

This classic is now further honored by Isabel Allende’s inspiring introduction. Universally recognized as one of the most important writers of our time, Allende once again contributes her talents to literature, to political principles, and to enlightenment.

-----------------

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Action ALERT/East Timor and Indonesia Action Network

Petition to Urge President-elect Obama not to appoint former Adm. Dennis Blair

Sign the petition now! http://www.petitiononline.com/blair01/petition.html

Urge President-elect Obama not to appoint former Adm. Dennis Blair as Director of National Intelligence. As Commander in the Pacific, he cozied up to the Indonesian military and downplayed human rights concerns in the lead up and aftermath of East Timor's independence referendum. According to news reports, Obama will appoint his intelligence chief this week.

For background go here - http://etan.org/news/2008/12blair.htm.

In addition to signing the petition, you can also cut, paste and modify the text below and post it to President-elect Obama's transition website. Just go here: http://change.gov/page/s/seattable and send a comment.

Thank you and spread the word! ETAN


President-elect Obama -

We urge you not to appoint Adm. Dennis Blair as Director of National Intelligence. During his years as Pacific Commander, Blair actively worked to reinstate military assistance and deepen ties to Indonesia's military, despite its ongoing human rights violations in East Timor and its consistent record of impunity. In 1999, he undermined the U.S. efforts to support human rights and self-determination in the Indonesian-occupied territory and opposed congressional efforts to limit assistance.

In April 1999, just days after Indonesian security forces and their militias carried out a brutal, churchyard massacre, Adm. Blair delivered a message of 'business-as-usual' to Indonesian General Wiranto, then Commander of the Indonesian armed forces. Following East Timor's pro-independence vote, Blair sought the quickest possible restoration of military assistance, despite Indonesia's highly destructive exit and the failure, which continues to this day, to prosecute the senior officials who oversaw the violence.

This lack of concern for human rights shows that he is unlikely to be a champion of reform. I don't believe that this is the kind of change people are expecting.

http://www.etan.org/action/2006/29alert.htm

Timor-Leste/Alkatiri urges continuing US support for Timor-Leste

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE

(FRETILIN)

Media Release, 23 June 2008

Alkatiri urges continuing US support for Timor Leste

FRETILIN Secretary General Dr Mari Alkatiri has concluded a successful visit to the United States where he urged government and congressional representatives to continue US support for Timor Leste's development.

In Washington DC, Dr Alkatiri met officials including US Assistant Secretary of State, Ambassador Christopher Hill, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Asia Pacific, Scott Marciel and Representative David Price, Chairman of the US House Of Representatives Democracy Committee.

"The people and state institutions of Timor Leste will continue to need the assistance of the people of the United States to consolidate national peace and stability so as to guarantee continuing social, political and economic progress,' Dr Alkatiri said.

"As the largest political party in Timor Leste with a plurality of seats in parliament, FRETILIN feels a responsibility to make every effort to help in this regard.

"Whatever internal political differences FRETILIN has with other parties in Timor Leste, we all have a responsibility to foster positive external relationships and seek productive outcomes for our nation."

In Washington, Dr Alkatiri also met senior executives and officials of the United States Agency for International Development, National Democratic Institute for International Affairs, International Republican Institute, the World Bank, the Millennium Challenge Corporation and the Peterson Institute for International Economic Development.

Dr Alkatiri was accompanied by former Secretary of State for the Council of Ministers, Gregorio da Sousa and FRETILIN MP and former Minister for Natural Resources, Minerals and Energy Policy, Jose Teixeira.

"We made it clear during all our meetings that as the de facto opposition in parliament, FRETILIN and it's allies want to play a positive and constructive role in supporting the state of the Timor-Leste, to build on the foundations laid by the former FRETILIN government to secure sustainable development for our people," Alkatiri said.

"We stressed that in doing so we sought continued assistance and advice of and from these organizations. Their response was very positive and I believe we can expect more from them than we have attained to date. They are very enthusiastic and willing to assist us playing this positive role," Alkatiri added.

During the meetings Dr Alkatiri was praised for his leadership of the first constitutional government that established the foundations of an independent state –especially the Petroleum Fund, legal framework and functioning public administration –which enabled Timor-Leste to withstand the crisis of 2006 and allow a return to normalcy much faster than many expected.

Alkatiri said he assured the Millennium Challenge Corporation that the process of attaining a "compact", which commenced under the former FRETILIN government, would have FRETILIN's ongoing support.

Also in Washington, Dr. Alkatiri briefed ambassadors and representatives of the CPLP (Community of Portuguese Language Countries) on positive developments towards peace and stability in Timor-Leste in recent weeks.

For more information contact:

Jose Teixeira +670 728 7080 (Dili, Timor-Leste)