Mapping the Taliban Last week saw a historic meeting in Islamabad between the intelligence chiefs of China, Russia, Pakistan and Iran. While the details of the meeting were not disclosed beyond statements implying that counter-terrorism was a dominating theme, it is a safe assumption that the war in Afghanistan was a major topic of discussion. …
So I know everyone is in a GET HYPE mood for this, fueled by loony interpretations ranging from THE RESISTANCE’s idea that Trump is going there to receive his annual performance review from DARK LORD OF THE KREMLIN, to Trump having chosen Helsinki specifically for Finland’s symbolic value as having played a role in the …
Continue reading Don’t Expect Much from the Helsinki Meeting
Both Presidents Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump are meeting today Monday in Helsinki, Finland to discuss issues much more important than events in the Middle East. Despite its own importance, the situation in Syria is not as urgent as clarifying US intentions towards Russia and the potential will of both parties to develop the commercial-security-military …
Continue reading Putin-Trump Meeting in Helsinki: Objectives Bigger Than Syria and the Middle East
I have said it before, and I will say it again, and I will keep saying it and saying it until it becomes mainstream conventional wisdom: it is the US intelligence community’s job to lie to you. In an article for The Nation dated July 11, the internationally renowned US-Russia relations expert Stephen F. Cohen warned of possible attempts …
Continue reading Two Big ‘Russia! Russia!’ Stories Released Days Before Trump-Putin Summit
The claim made by many neoconservatives that Israel and the United States are partners in the Middle East because their strategic interests are identical is belied by the fact that the Israelis are more than willing to ignore Washington when its suits them to do so. The claim of identical interests has always been false, …
The Trump administration’s “Deal of the Century” for the Palestine-Israel has, predictably, gone over like a lead balloon. So it’s shifting gears. The Washington Post reports, “With President Trump’s promised Middle East peace plan stalled, administration officials are focusing on improving conditions in the impoverished Gaza Strip — a move that could put political pressure on Palestinian …
Continue reading Trump Turns to Gaza as Middle East Deal of the Century Collapses
The State of Israel has no oil wells. It has no gold mines. What has it got? It has the ownership of the remembrance of the Holocaust. That is worth a lot. Everyone who wants to clean himself from the stain needs a certificate from the State of Israel. Such a document is worth very …
A recent European Council summit in Brussels was meant to articulate a united policy on the burgeoning refugees and migrant crisis. Instead, it served to highlight the bitter divisions among various European countries. Considering the gravity of the matter, Europe’s self-serving policies are set to worsen an already tragic situation. True, several European leaders, including …
Continue reading Europe’s Iron Curtain: The Refugee Crisis is about to Worsen
A new, shocking report discovered that the US nuclear power industry could be on the verge of a collapse — a reality that many have yet to realize. The report was issued by researchers at Carnegie Mellon University’s Department of Engineering and Public Policy (EPP), Harvard University, and the University of California San Diego School …
