Russia Begins Operations in Syria: End Game for the US Empire?

Just wanted to give a quick shout out to angelburst29! I've been keeping up with your postings and as a result, realized I was lagging behind in my education on Saudi Wahhabism. I've finally been able to devote some time to studying these texts:

Saudi Wahhabism: The ideological bedrock of modern terrorism in Reply #921 and the linked article and...The Dönmeh: The Middle East’s Most Whispered Secret (the true history of the Dönmeh and their influence on past and current events in the Middle East) in Reply #3 of the thread: Slavoj Žižek: Is something rotten in the state of Turkey?

Now, if I find myself in a conversation about "militant Islam", I'll be able to say a word or two and sound half-way intelligent. It appears you play an important role for making this forum truly a one-stop source for the best available info on just about everything. Thank you!


And I second this:

[quote author=angelburst29]
My deepest Condolences to President Bashar al-Assad and his Family - on the death of his Mother - Anisa Ahmed Makhlouf.[/quote]
 
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Реальную правду о «достижениях» Пентагона открыли американские СМИ Видео инклюдед

8 февраля 2016, 11:00

http://tvzvezda.ru/
http://tvzvezda.ru/news/vstrane_i_mire/content/201602081049-wlp1.htm

Барак Обама, выступая перед самыми влиятельными и могущественными людьми, в очередной раз возвестил о светлом будущем США. За период его нахождения «у руля» Америка стала «самой мощной державой на Земле», а национальная армия превратилась в «лучшую боевую силу в истории мира».

Однако при внимательном рассмотрении есть несколько нелицеприятных фактов, сообщает издание National Interest.

Соединенные Штаты далеко не так всемогущи, как пытаются это представить, считает издание. Да, было время, когда Америку действительно считали мировой державой. После знаменитой операции «Буря в пустыне» в 1991 году сдались даже Россия и Китай. Тогдашняя оправданная военная гордость спустя годы мутировала в высокомерие. И это стало опасным для нации.

По мнению газеты, сейчас военная сфера в Америке – всего лишь отрасль с остаточным финансированием. Уже не раз сообщалось о том, что система закупок военной техники нарушена, деньги расходуются неэффективно. И это еще малая толика проблем. Изучение ситуации в более широком контексте показывает, что ситуация намного серьезнее. Одна из самых очевидных неудач Вашингтона – боевые системы будущего (FCS). Мало того, что они не оправдали возложенных надежд, они нанесли огромный урон американской безопасности.

Как полагает СМИ, размышления о будущем армии, которыми увлекались высокопоставленные военные, в том числе и начальник штаба армии генерал Эрик Шинсеки, результатов не дали. Больше десяти лет Соединенные Штаты могли бы модернизировать свои сухопутные силы, в то время как Вашингтон провозглашал себя властителем мира. Но и эта возможность была утрачена.

Translation: Video Included
The real truth about the "achievements" of the Pentagon opened the American media

Barack Obama, speaking in front of the most influential and powerful people, once again ushered in a bright future of the United States. During the period of its presence "at the helm" America has become "the most powerful nation on Earth," and the national army has become a "best fighting force in the history of the world."
However, on closer examination there are a few hard-hitting facts, said the publication National Interest.

The United States is not as omnipotent as it is trying to present, says the publication. Yes, there was a time when America really considered a world power. After the famous "Operation Desert Storm" in 1991, surrendered to Russia and even China. The then military justified pride years later mutated into arrogance. And it was dangerous for the nation.

According to the newspaper, the military sphere is now in America - only industry with a residual financing. More than once it was reported that the military equipment procurement system is broken, money is spent inefficiently. And it's still a small fraction of problems. The study of the situation in the broader context shows that the situation is much more serious. One of the most obvious failures of Washington - Future Combat Systems (FCS). Not only that they have not lived up to expectations, they caused tremendous damage to American security.

As the media suggests thinking about the future of the army, who are addicted to high-ranking military, including the Army Chief of Staff Gen. Eric Shinseki, to no avail. More than ten years, the United States could modernize its land forces, while Washington declared himself ruler of the world. But this opportunity was lost.
 
Buddy said:
And I second this:

[quote author=angelburst29]
My deepest Condolences to President Bashar al-Assad and his Family - on the death of his Mother - Anisa Ahmed Makhlouf.
[/quote]

Yeah, I'll third that. May the Assad family get through these difficult times with some relief from the pressures from so many directions.
 
sitting said:
My best guess is 811 indeed will prove to be the important marker.

With first day of the Chinese New Year, evidence is mounting that 811 may indeed be a marker of record.

German DAX this morning in full flight. More importantly, it broke key support.
And what may lie ahead, is a reversal of roles in terms of "relative carnage."

The Chinese equity market took the brunt in the previous 8 months. The next 8 months however, may see the U.S. and European markets bear the worst of things. (Chart patterns are fairly suggestive.)

Noteworthy too, is the recent divergent action between Ruble and oil. Ruble has gained slightly ... in face of oil's dip once more (to around $30.) This is a small but potentially telling sign of things to come.

The start of this Monkey year may have lit a fire under the U.S. dominated "central banking - warfare" financial system. Much harm has been done to humanity through this devious scheme, created by money changers. I'm tempted to say "good riddance" -- but I shudder as well, knowing the widespread deep suffering & carnage that's likely to follow.

I could be very wrong.

FWIW.

PS
Mods please move this to new thread if appropriate. I realize this subject (even if potentially relevant) does not truly fit into the main focus of this thread. Thanks in advance.
 
Mega Sale: Russian Cutting-Edge Fighter Jets Going Global

http://sputniknews.com/military/20160208/1034423391/russian-fighter-jets.html

Many Middle Eastern countries have repeatedly expressed their desire to purchase large shipments of Russian T-90 tanks.

If not a direct opposition from Washington, this machine possibly would have become indispensable in Arab East and in Iran.

But tanks aside, Russian fighter jets are taking on a large niche in the markets of many countries of the world. The fighter jets image considerably strengthened when analysts studied and estimated the impact of Russia’s air campaign in Syria.

Recently, a major stir was caused when the newest Su-35 fighter jets were dispatched to Syria. To date, this is the best multipurpose heavy fighter aircraft of the fourth generation in the world.

Russian technology is in high demand in the Asia-Pacific region. China signed a contract with Russia for the supply of twenty-four Su-35 fighter jets worth about two billion dollars. Beijing became the first foreign customer of the Su-35. The delivery of the jets will begin this year.

A year ago, a contract was signed for the supply of four battalions of S-400 anti-aircraft missile systems totaling around 1.9 billion dollars. The negotiations had begun in 2010-2011 and by 2014 many contentious issues had been resolved.

For Russia, the successful delivery of the fighter jets to China will further improve its position in foreign markets. It is expected that the next buyer of the Russian Su-35 may be Indonesia.

Furthermore, it is known that Egypt is set to buy around 50 MiG-29M / M2 which is a twin-engine jet fighter. The front-line MiG-29 appears to be a real fighter. The piloting skills and combat potential was marvelously demonstrated by Syrian pilots flying these jets recently.

Earlier, it was also reported that the contract between Russia and Egypt on the supply of a large consignment of attack helicopters Ka-52 has been concluded.

But it is not just the Middle Eastern and Asian countries that are interested in Russian cutting-edge technology. Armenia and Belorussia are due to receive Su-30M and MiG-29 Russian fighter jets respectively.

The first recipient of the Su-30CM however, was Kazakhstan. It acquired four aircraft under contract in 2014 and ordered seven additional jets at the end of 2015.
 
‘Russian companies gearing up for Iran business’

http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2016/02/09/449356/Russian-firms-return-Iran

A new report says Russian companies are making a dash for Iranian market following the recent removal of anti-Iran sanctions.

The New York Times report on Monday said different Russian companies are in line to get back to Iran after last month’s sanctions lift.

Russian aircraft maker Sukhoi wants to sell its Superjet airliners to Iran’s transportation market while Avtovaz has started talks to open an assembly plant for Lada cars in the country.

The oil and natural gas giants Gazprom and Lukoil are weighing investments in a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project on the Persian Gulf and an oil field.

The Eurasia Drilling Company, an oil field services business, and Tatneft, a second-tier Russian oil company based in Tatarstan, a predominantly Muslim region east of Moscow, both have good prospects, the report added.

It also noted that although Tehran is in business with Russia and Europe, American companies are left out of the equation.

It said unilateral US sanctions on Iran prohibit most commercial ties with Tehran, so American companies are not permitted to vie for contracts with its oil and natural gas industry.

The energy industry is especially attractive for overseas companies.

The United States is allowing trade only in Persian rugs and commercial airplanes.

The International Monetary Fund projects that Iran’s economy will grow 5.5 percent in 2016 and in 2017.


EU Eyes Iran Energy Resources

http://www.shana.ir/en/newsagency/254881/EU-Eyes-Iran-Energy-Resources

During the Monday meeting, Kazem Jalali said the potentialities of Iran and the EU must be made the best used of by cooperation in various fields including energy, economy, banking relations, and scientific and university cooperation.
He said the EU needs to diversify its energy resources and Iran is the best untapped gas supplier which can become a major provider of the commodity for EU.

He said Iran-EU trade does not need to be limited to oil and gas and can extend to other areas like discovery, extraction, operation and production of the commodities.
For her part Helga Schmid expressed satisfaction at her visit from Iran, saying Iran's parliament played a significant role in Tehran's nuclear case and its deal.

She said the ban-free Iran makes a good opportunity for expansion of mutual ties with EU.


Going Global: Iran Eyes Joining Oil Projects in Six Countries

http://sputniknews.com/business/20160208/1034413993/iran-oil-projects.html

The National Iranian Oil Engineering and Construction Company (NIOEC) has started talks with six countries on buying shares and building refining facilities.

The talks involve Malaysia, Indonesia, South Africa, Sierra Leone, Brazil and India, managing director Hamid Sharif Razi was quoted as saying by Shana agency.

Currently, NIOEC owns 30 percent of shares in an oil refining project in Malaysia, with a capacity of 20,000 barrels a day. In addition, the company is eyeing to buy 40 percent of shares in a refinery in Indonesia, with a daily capacity of 300,000 barrels.

According to Razi, the cooperation is aimed to provide sales of Iranian-produced oil and to buy oil products if needed.

It was earlier reported that Tehran is building energy cooperation with European oil and gas majors, including France’s Total and Italy’s Eni.

The National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) will soon finalize a deal with Total to sell 160,000 barrels of crude daily to the company.

Currently, Iran is exporting 300,000 barrels a day to Europe, its major energy partner.

After sanctions against Iran were removed on January 16, Iran has come back to the global energy market, with an estimated 500,000 barrels a day expected to be added to the market.
 
Buddy said:
Just wanted to give a quick shout out to angelburst29! I've been keeping up with your postings and as a result, realized I was lagging behind in my education on Saudi Wahhabism. I've finally been able to devote some time to studying these texts:

[...]

Now, if I find myself in a conversation about "militant Islam", I'll be able to say a word or two and sound half-way intelligent.

I appreciate the kind gesture, Buddy and Thank You for the acknowledgement but I have to admit, the information on Saudi Wahhabism and related material - actually came about through my own ignorance of the Saudi Kingdom, itself and where it fits in with it's neighbors in Turkey, Qatar and Syria. I keep coming across the words, "Holy War" and had no clue, as to religious orientation involved in all these skirmishes. It was just another case of - figuring out who's who, their background and history and how it's involved in the recent geopolitical arena in Syria. Considering, my only education and World view on Saudi Arabia is solely based on an old Hollywood movie, "Lawrence of Arabia" featuring Peter O"toole - I was basically starting out at ground-zero.

http://www.pri.org/stories/2013-12-16/peter-otooles-lawrence-arabia-fact-or-fiction
 
France Channel 2 Uses Russian MoD Videos to Claim Own Successes (VIDEO)
http://www.fort-russ.com/2016/02/france-channel-2-uses-russian-mod.html

8th February, 2016 - The TV channel France 2 has illustrated the "progress of French aviation" in Syria using footage of air strikes inflicted by the aircraft of the Russian air force. The recording of a program was replicated on social networks.

The presentation of France 2, which blogger Timofey Vasiliev published on his Facebook, spoke about the large number of dead Syrian civilians because of the actions of the Russian airforce. No evidence for this was given, but the journalist said that the French aviation works more precisely.

Vasiliev wrote that in the news story, Russia was accused of using "unguided" bombs that lead to large civilian casualties, but France, working in a coalition, "successfully" destroyed terrorists of "Islamic State".

The story of French high-precision air strikes was illustrated with footage from the Russian Defense Ministry. The blogger stressed that it cannot be called an ordinary mistake during production — the Russian-language (Cyrillic) annotations on the video were removed.



Days After Saudi Announcement, UAE Is Also “Prepared” To Send Ground Troops To Syria
http://www.activistpost.com/2016/02/days-after-saudi-announcement-uae-is-also-prepared-to-send-ground-troops-to-syria.html

Only days after Saudi Arabia announced its foolishness to the world in a statement revealing that the feudal Gulf monarchy is prepared to send ground troops to Syria under the guise of fighting a terror group it actually supports, the United Arab Emirates made a similar announcement.

UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Anwar Gargash stated at a news conference in Abu Dhabi that “Our position throughout has been that a real campaign against [ISIL] has to include a ground force.”

He also stated that “US leadership on this” would also be a prerequisite for the UAE’s military involvement.


With the United States put somewhat in check by the Russians, there remains very little else available to NATO other than to risk a direct military conflict with Russia or to find new proxy forces to do the dirty work of the empire.



New York Times: Syria Has Become a Disgrace for the USA, and a Victory for Putin
http://www.fort-russ.com/2016/02/new-york-times-syria-has-become.html

Russian President Vladimir Putin has already won in Syria, according to journalists from The New York Times, which became possible due to the "helplessness" of American President Barack Obama. He turned Syria into "a bloody graveyard of American beliefs."

The publication stated that Putin's systematic policy ensured the success of Russia's actions in Syria, as well as "the senselessness" of the US administration.

The author, Roger Cohen, notices that Washington only demonstrates the visibility of activities in Syria. Cohen is confident that American statements - "are just words" and actually "music in Syria is ordered" by Vladimir Putin. Especially because of the inaction of Obama, writes Stratfor.

In addition, the author believes that although the Syrian army are successfully defeating the militants on the territory, it is not a decisive fact in the fight against ISIL. Being almost completely surrounded, Aleppo could become the Syrian Sarajevo, the publication notes. Blame belongs to the "helplessness" of the U.S. government.

The statements of the U.S government, that Syria is not a major factor in U.S. interests, and a new war should be in any way avoided, - all this only leads to the transformation of Washington's policy towards tacit agreement with Moscow, says the author.

According to Cohen, Syria is a "disgrace" of the Obama administration, which crossed out all the successes in domestic policy. Moreover, "The Syrian agony" of the U.S. leader led to the terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, to the disintegration of the nucleus of the European Union, whose countries' internal borders returned due to migrants.

"Syria has become a bloody graveyard of American beliefs. It has undermined confidence in the words of America, evoking considerable anger towards Sunni allies from the Persian Gulf, strengthening the position of Assad ... and Putin has opened the way to determining the fate of Syria," says Cohen, speaking about the disgrace of Obama.

According to the journalist, the US can only currently do one thing: increase the number of refugees from Syria, helping Europe to cope with the flood of migrants.

"If we let fear dictate policy, the terrorists win. But Putin has already won," Cohen concludes.



Russia Successfully Infiltrates the Ranks of ISIS
http://www.fort-russ.com/2016/02/russia-successfully-infiltrates-ranks.html

hechen spies loyal to the Kremlin have infiltrated Islamic State in Syria and are gathering intelligence the Russian air force uses to select bombing targets, the hardline leader of Chechnya told Russian State TV.

Ramzan Kadyrov, who as a close ally of President Vladimir Putin keeps tight control of a mostly Muslim region with a history of rebellion against Moscow, said Chechens had trained alongside Islamic State fighters at the start of the Syrian war.

“An extensive spy network has been set up inside Islamic State,” Kadyrov’s office quoted him on Monday as telling Russia’s state-controlled Russia 1 channel.

He said Chechnya’s “best fighters” had been sent to Syria to gather information about militants’ structure and numbers.

“Thanks to their work as agents the Russian air force is successfully destroying terrorist bases in Syria.”

When asked about the comments, Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for Putin, declined to confirm the presence of Chechen forces in Syria.
Kadyrov’s full interview on the subject is due to be broadcast on state TV on Wednesday.
 
angelburst29 said:
I appreciate the kind gesture, Buddy and Thank You for the acknowledgement but I have to admit, the information on Saudi Wahhabism and related material - actually came about through my own ignorance of the Saudi Kingdom, itself and where it fits in with it's neighbors in Turkey, Qatar and Syria. I keep coming across the words, "Holy War" and had no clue, as to religious orientation involved in all these skirmishes. It was just another case of - figuring out who's who, their background and history and how it's involved in the recent geopolitical arena in Syria. Considering, my only education and World view on Saudi Arabia is solely based on an old Hollywood movie, "Lawrence of Arabia" featuring Peter O"toole - I was basically starting out at ground-zero.

Thanks for that explanation.

When I first crossed paths with that information on Saudi Wahhabism, I was already looking for clues to help me understand a particular something. I had also read in another one of your postings about how one or more Russian government officials had met with some militants. After having some kind of conversation with them, the militants somehow came to understand what I can only describe as 'how they had been hoodwinked' by an ideology that had been blended into their Islamic religion but was more a foreign invention. An analogy might be like saying Saudi Wahhabism is like the predators mind being implanted within an ordinarily peaceful operation of mental processes in an ordinary individual subscribing to Islam. So, it appears those militants had been 'turned away' from their previous dedication to terrorist activities. Details now are fuzzy, though, and I can't find the article ATM so I might not be correctly describing what happened.

Anyway, I had been wondering how the Russians accomplished that 'turn away'. So far, my tentative answer is that they know the various ideologies surrounding them very well. Since they already knew the why behind what was going on, they would have developed a way of explaining it to anyone willing to listen. My respect for Putin and his trusted officials bumped up another notch when I read all that. I found myself hoping that educating some militants on Saudi Wahhabism was part of their turnaround.

In a way, I hope that information can become really useful to people in days and months to come.
 
Moscow Questions UN Chief’s Impartiality Over Remarks on Syria
http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160208/1034420433/ban-ki-moon-russia.html

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — On Friday, Ban told the Financial Times newspaper that Russian airstrikes near the Syrian city of Aleppo made it harder for UN envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura to mediate talks between Damascus and opposition that were underway in Geneva. They were eventually put back three weeks until February 25.

“He de facto apportioned the blame for stalled intra-Syria talks in Geneva and deteriorating humanitarian situation [in Syria] to Russia,” Zakharova said.

She said that Ban’s remarks played into the hands of Western media who had been spreading rumors about the Russian air campaign against Islamists in Syria and the toll it took on the civilian population.

“We have always assumed and still assume that comments from the chief executive of an international organization should be unbiased and objective, in line with his status. This was obviously not the case,” Zakharova stressed.

In late January, militants, including those from the al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Nusra Front, reinforced their positions in Aleppo close to the northern border with Turkey. A Syrian ground offensive backed by Russian airstrikes managed to sever their supply routes and gain control of border regions.



Russian Space Center: 2 objects in orbit after North Korean rocket launch
http://rbth.com/news/2016/02/09/russian-space-center-2-objects-in-orbit-after-north-korean-rocket-launch_566137

Two objects - a satellite and a carrier rocket's upper stage - have ended up in orbit as a result of North Korea's launch of a carrier rocket on February 7, a spokesman for Russia's Space Surveillance Center said on Feb. 9.

"We are monitoring two objects. They are a satellite and an upper stage," he added.

When describing the parameters of the orbit of these two objects, the spokesman said that "their altitude is approximately 500 kilometers, with an inclination of 97 degrees."

The specialist also suggested that, judging by the orbit parameters, "it is most likely an Earth remote sensing satellite."

"We see it," he added.

The U.S. Space Surveillance Network reported earlier that North Korea's KMS-4 satellite was assigned the international identification number 2016-009A. It was put into a near-polar orbit with an inclination of 97 degrees, with an apogee altitude of 501 kilometers, and a perigee altitude of 465 kilometers, it said.

The upper stage of the Unha-3 carrier rocket, which has been assigned the international identification number 2016-009B, has remained in an orbit with similar parameters.

Both objects take approximately 94 minutes to complete one orbit of the earth.



North Korea rocket launch may spur U.S. missile defense buildup in Asia
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-satellite-missiledefense-idUSKCN0VH034

North Korea's latest rocket launch might kick off a buildup of U.S. missile defense systems in Asia, U.S. officials and missile defense experts said, something that could further strain U.S.-China ties and also hurt relations between Beijing and Seoul.

North Korea says it put a satellite into orbit on Sunday, but the United States and its allies see the launch as cover for Pyongyang's development of ballistic missile technology that could be used to deliver a nuclear weapon.

Washington sought to reassure its allies South Korea and Japan of its commitment to their defense after the launch, which followed a North Korean nuclear test on Jan. 6.

The United States and South Korea said they would begin formal talks about deploying the sophisticated Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system, or THAAD, to the Korean peninsula "at the earliest possible date."

South Korea had been reluctant to publicly discuss the possibility due to worries about upsetting China, its biggest trading partner.

Beijing, at odds with the United States over Washington's reaction to its building of artificial islands in the disputed South China Sea, quickly expressed "deep concern" about a system whose radar could penetrate Chinese territory.

China had made its position clear to Seoul and Washington, the Foreign Ministry said.

"When pursuing its own security, one country should not impair others' security interests," spokeswoman Hua Chunying said in a statement.



Egyptian foreign minister: Libya intervention should wait
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/egyptian-foreign-minister-libya-intervention-should-wait/2016/02/08/50864bd0-ceb6-11e5-b2bc-988409ee911b_story.html

The international community should not intervene against Islamic State expansion in Libya until a Libyan government is formed and requests such assistance, Egypt said Monday.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, in Washington for bilateral talks with the Obama administration, said in an interview that “the Libyan people should undertake the decisions related to the fight against terrorism and how it should be conducted and what form of assistance should be provided to it. This should be a Libyan-led process defined by the Libyan people.”

Pressure has been growing for Western military intervention to stem the growth of the Islamic State in Libya, where the militants control the port city of Sirte and have attacked the oil infrastructure. U.S. intelligence has said that the Islamic State’s headquarters in Syria has increasingly directed new recruits to Libya, where it sees enhanced prospects of expanding territory it controls amid political chaos there.

Pentagon options presented to the White House include airstrikes, Special Forces operations and assistance to Libyan ground forces. Officials said no decisions were made at a National Security Council meeting late last month.

During a meeting last week in Rome on the Libya situation, Secretary of State John F. Kerry said that the world must prevent the Islamic State from gaining a “stranglehold” over Libya and urged Libyan political factions to agree on a unity government.



Al-Qaida Militants Battle Each Other in Southern Yemen
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/saudi-arabia-shoots-missile-fired-yemen-36783527

Al-Qaida militants battled each other on Monday in a southern Yemeni city controlled by the group, in what appeared to be an internal power struggle that erupted after a senior militant was killed in a U.S. drone strike.

Al-Qaida militants battled each other on Monday in a southern Yemeni city controlled by the group, in what appeared to be an internal power struggle that erupted after a senior militant was killed in a U.S. drone strike.

The clashes broke out in the southern city of Zinjibar late Sunday, leaving at least seven militants dead and another nine wounded, according to Yemeni officials. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.

The rival factions are led by local commander known as Abu Anas al-Sanani and another known as Ossan Baliedy, the brother of Jalal Baliedy, the leader who was killed along with three others in a drone strike on Thursday.

The late Baliedy headed al-Qaida in Abyan province, of which Zinjibar is the capital, and was known for brutality, including the beheading of 16 soldiers in August 2014. He was believed to be ideologically closer to the Islamic State group, which is locked in a bitter rivalry with al-Qaida and has a branch in Yemen.



4 crew dead in Russian military helicopter crash
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/article59148443.html

MOSCOW — The Russian Defense Ministry says one of its helicopters has crashed in northwestern Russia, killing its entire crew of four.

The ministry said the Mi-8 helicopter went down Monday during a training mission near Ostrov in the Pskov region, about 600 kilometers (about 370 miles) northwest of Moscow.

The reason for the crash wasn't immediately known. A team of military experts headed to the area to investigate the crash.

The Mi-8, designed in the 1960s, has been the workhorse for both Soviet and Russian aviation and widely exported around the world. Thousands have been built.
 
It appears you play an important role for making this forum truly a one-stop source for the best available info on just about everything. Thank you!

I sincerely wish to endorse and second this Angelburst29. Without you so many very important posts would not have got out there. I am so grateful to all the intensive research you do in pulling up all these important articles. I still have one person who keeps saying - yes David Icke (yuk) has all this stuff too - I very much doubt it and am sure half his stuff comes from our site anyway - there are always these who don't appreciate true work and dedication. Your posts are always up to date and in advance of most other news outlets. For this I have gained many many true new followers on facebook. Plus many articles are shared 50+ times. Sott articles hit record shares for me - but for obvious objective reasons!

I sure appreciate you canny knack/experience in digging deep for the truth, and will always share what you post. As Sott say - it for the discernment of the reader to decide the reality of the article.

Thanks again for your consistency and dedication to Truth. :)
 
Thank You for the compliment, Happyliza, very much appreciated.

You're ahead of me - in that - I never got into "Facebook". It's a very important avenue, for the work we share here and multiplies all our efforts - to a wider audience. One thing I have noticed in the past month or so, when searching the net for specific information or trying to validate a reference source, I'm beginning to see (more and more) listings and articles from SOTT in the listings. In one instance, around Christmas, I was searching the net to verify something and was going through some of the links provided, when I clicked on a link and found myself on a SOTT FOCUS article. It's moments like that - which are the most rewarding!
 
There is one interesting thing of which people don't think much, until they start to read news dated in recent days and dated a couple of years ago. It is how USA is declining in military and even more in political power, and how more and more nations are starting not to obey everything which comes from Washington.

Just compare relations and balance in power between Russia and USA now (February 2016.) and, for example, February 2013. Its totally different, and it is only 3 years between. And not forget that USA is a huge empire, one woulds expect that its power would decrease in a much slower pace.

And now we even have North Korea, with: "hunger, mad president who kills with cannon his own hungry citizens" (if you believe CNN . . . ) launching its own satellite. Which gives them status of the real 'threat' to the US puppets in Asia, instead of fake one (faked by USA) which was until today.
 
Bozeberg Financial News
Putin's New Internet Czar Wants Apple and Google to Pay More Taxes
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-02-09/putin-s-new-internet-czar-joins-hunt-for-google-apple-taxes
February 9, 2016 — 3:00 AM WAT
Updated on February 9, 2016 — 4:07 PM WAT
By Ilya Khrennikov and Stepan Kravchenko
When he’s not checking Gmail on his MacBook, Vladimir Putin’s new Internet czar can’t stop railing against American technology companies.

Google, Apple Inc. and Microsoft Corp., collectively worth more than Russia’s gross domestic product, have all entered German Klimenko’s crosshairs since he was named Putin’s first Internet adviser six weeks ago.

In a 90-minute interview peppered with expletives, Klimenko said forcing Google and Apple (:evil:) to pay more taxes and banning Microsoft Windows from government computers are necessary measures best explained in terms of barnyard economics and marital infidelity.

“We are breeding the cow and they are milking it,” Klimenko, who hasn’t had time to move into his Kremlin office, said in Moscow at the headquarters of his Internet group, which includes blog-hosting and statistics services.

Klimenko, 49, is pushing to raise taxes on U.S. companies to help level the playing field for Russian competitors such as Yandex and Mail.ru.
His efforts mirror those of governments across Europe and beyond to squeeze more revenue out of Google, Apple and other multinationals with increasingly complex billing and ownership structures.
Accused Assassin

The Putin adviser already has an ally in parliament: Andrey Lugovoi, one of two former KGB officers accused by a U.K. judge of assassinating former agent Alexander Litvinenko, a vocal Putin critic, in London in 2006.

Lugovoi, who became a lawmaker after Litvinenko’s poisoning and denies wrongdoing, is sponsoring a bill that would apply an 18 percent value-added tax to as much as 300 billion rubles ($3.9 billion) of revenue that Google, Apple and other foreign companies earn each year.

The bill lists a dozen categories of digital products and services on which domestic companies currently pay VAT but foreigners for the most part don’t, including ads, games, movies, marketplace transactions and cloud computing.

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‘Banana Republic’


“When you buy an app from Google Play or the App Store anywhere in Europe, VAT is charged at the place of payment, but not here in our banana republic,” Klimenko said.

The proposed amendment to the tax code is one of scores being debated by lawmakers seeking new sources of revenue to plug the biggest fiscal deficit in six years. Plunging oil prices and sanctions over Ukraine have helped prolong the worst recession since Putin came to power in 2000.

But the Kremlin’s issues with Silicon Valley (:evil:) go much deeper than finances.

‘CIA Project’ :cuckoo:

In a country where the president has called the Internet a “CIA project,” suspicion runs deep that U.S. companies do the bidding of their government every bit as much as their shareholders.

Google, for example, which can track “everything,” responds to 32,000 requests a year from U.S. law-enforcement agencies but it won’t answer one from Russia, according to Klimenko.

“We have to consider this as a kind of potential threat to our national security,” he said.

Google, Apple and Microsoft all declined to comment.
Blogger Watch

After returning to the presidency in 2012 amid the largest protests of his rule, (:pinocchio:) Putin moved to tighten his grip over the Internet in much the same way he brought television stations and newspapers to heel in his first two terms.

He signed a law allowing authorities to shut down sites for hosting content loosely defined as “extremist” and introduced new restrictions on blogging that forced popular writers to register with a watchdog. Putin also wants Internet companies to store all the personal data they collect on Russian users on servers located inside the country.

Microsoft, Google and other U.S. companies “reached the point of no return” when they complied with sanctions over Putin’s annexation of Crimea by halting all business with the peninsula, according to Klimenko. As a result, it’s “inevitable” Russia will switch state networks from Windows to an open-source system based on Linux, a move 22,000 municipal governments are prepared to make immediately, he said.

“It’s like a wife seeing her husband with another woman -- he can swear an oath afterward, but the trust is lost,” Klimenko said.
Chinese Firewall


With relations with the West at a post-Cold War low and few signs of improvement on the horizon, Putin’s new adviser said Russia will continue to erect barriers in cyberspace.

“The way it’s done in North Korea or China with its firewall probably doesn’t fit us, but it’s only a matter of time,” Klimenko said. “It won’t be fatal if Google leaves Russia -- Yandex and Mail.ru have similar technologies.”
Mean While.....................
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCIUf8eYPqA
Maniobras inesperadas del Ejercito Ruso en el Sur del país ✫ Rusia 09.02.2016
Published on Feb 9, 2016
Atención ! Las maniobras-sorpresa van a pasar en el mar Caspio, Cáucaso , Cimera y Mar Negro . Todos estos localidades están muy cerca de Turquía .

https://youtu.be/xP-Ibyr5hNw

Published on February 9, 2016
Zahra town was almost four years surrounded by terrorists, but did not give up.

https://youtu.be/XtM2webDBMg
 
Russia, Denmark, Canada Geologists Discussing Russian Arctic Bid
http://sputniknews.com/world/20160210/1034482490/russia-denmark-canada-discus-russian-arctic-bid.html

Geologists from Russia, Denmark and Canada hold regular consultations on the scientific basis of Russia’s bid to expand its Arctic continental shelf, Russian Natural Resources and Environment Minister Sergei Donskoy said.

Russia has been seeking the recognition of an expanded resource-rich outer limit of the continental shelf (OLCS) since 2001, but has been turned down due to lack of geological evidence that the territory is a natural continuation of Russia's shelf.

"Such consultations are conducted on a regular basis in a bilateral form and in the form of traditional conferences geological agencies of the Arctic states and within the framework of the Arctic Council," Donskoy told RIA Novosti on Tuesday.

The minister is expected to submit a revised application to the United Nations later in the day. According to Donskoy, it could take the special UN commission up to five years to consider Russia's revised bid.

Russia is one of the five Arctic nations – alongside the United States, Canada, Norway and Denmark – that have been laying claims to hydrocarbon deposits located in its offshore Arctic border areas.

According to the Ministry of Natural Resources, the total value of energy resources concentrated in Russia's Arctic region exceeds $30 trillion. Ministry experts predict that in the future, Russian oil and gas production will be mainly concentrated on the Arctic sea shelves.



Russia's Bid for Arctic Shelf Border Expansion in Facts and Details
http://sputniknews.com/russia/20160209/1034459582/russia-arctic-bid-details.html

The 40th session of the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) is taking place from February 1 to March 18. Russian Natural Resources and Environment Minister Sergei Donskoi is due to present the country's claim to extend its rights in the Arctic continental shelf in New York later in the day.

In early August 2015, Russia submitted a partially revised application to the United Nations seeking to enlarge its continental shelf limits in the Arctic Ocean. The application included Russia’s scientifically substantiated claim for expanding the shelf area in the Murmansk-North Pole-Chukotka triangle.

The continental shelf is a shallow extension of the continent’s landmass under the ocean, restricted outwardly by the ocean floor bend, with the depth increasing sharply along the continental slope to the ocean floor.


Under Article 76 of UN Convention on the Law of the Sea of 1982, the continental shelf of a coastal state comprises the seabed and subsoil of the submarine areas extending beyond its territorial sea "throughout the natural prolongation of its land territory" to the outer edge of the continental margin, including the continental slope. A coastal state can always claim its rights to the shelf within the distance of 200 nautical miles from the coastline. In certain conditions, the outer limit of the continental shelf cannot extend further than 350 nautical miles. This restriction, however, does not apply to submarine elevations if they are acknowledged as "natural components" of the continental margin.

On December 20, 2001, Russia sent an application to the CLCS to expand its Arctic shelf beyond the 200-mile area, which means the right to include the underwater space near the northern coast (contiguous to the Arctic Ocean) and the eastern coast (contiguous to the Pacific Ocean) in its continental shelf.

The grounds for this were a statement that the underwater Lomonosov Ridge stretching from the New Siberian Islands through the North Pole in the direction of Canada and Greenland, as well as the Mendeleev Ridge situated further east, are a continuation of the Eurasian continent and, consequently, do not fall under the 350-mile limit.

In June 2002, the application was examined and declined due to the lack of details on the bottom relief maps and justification of the continental nature of the above-mentioned ridges and their connection with the Siberian shelf.

Russia’s current, partially revised application is corroborated by the results of a 10-year complex geological and geophysical research conducted in the Arctic water area, including full-scale expeditions engaging ice-breakers and special research vessels.

The application was elaborated by the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry, which in 2010 engaged the Russian Academy of Sciences to provide the scientific substantiation of the application. The Academy of Sciences formed a creative team led by Vice President Nikolai Laverov, consisting of the best-known geoscientists and geophysicists involved in researching Arctic issues and employed by the academy’s leading relevant institutes.

The Arktika-2007 polar expedition was organized in May-September 2007 to examine the Arctic Ocean shelf. The expedition reached the North Pole on August 1.

The Mir-1 and Mir-2 manned submersibles reached the ocean floor in the North Pole area and conducted several oceanographic, hydro-meteorological and ice investigations on August 2. A unique experiment involving collecting soil and plant samples at a depth of almost 14,000 feet was implemented for the first time in history. In addition, a Russian flag was installed in the Arctic Ocean bed near the North Pole. The results of the Arctic expedition formed the basis of Russia’s position in establishing the ownership of this section of the Arctic shelf.

As the Akademik Fyodorov research vessel returned from the Arctic in October 2014, the termination was announced of all planned activities for an application to the UN concerning the expansion of Russia’s Arctic shelf.

Data obtained by the Akademik Fyodorov expedition demonstrated the structure and composition of the basic sea bottom components and made it possible to produce the world’s first physical model of the Arctic’s geological evolution.

The bottom segment, which the updated application concerns, includes the shelf of the Arctic seas along Russia’s borders and the polar segment of the ocean basin in the region of the Central Arctic underwater elevations – the Lomonosov Ridge, Hollow of Submariners, Mendeleev Ridge, Chukchi Hollow and Chukchi Rise. The application proceeds from the point that the region’s underwater elevations naturally belong to the continent’s outlying parts, making a block of the continental, not oceanic, Earth crust that moved occasionally but never tore away from Eurasia.

The updated application also refers to unsettled Russian-Danish and Russian-Canadian issues of the delimitation of maritime territories. Denmark’s application dated December 2014 for the shelf north of Greenland concerns a major part of the territory Russia applies for – particularly, the polar territory and part of the Lomonosov Ridge. The Canadian application, now under consideration, might also involve the territory that Russia is applying for – namely, the Mendeleev Ridge.

Considering the superimposition of their applications, the Arctic states’ foreign ministers met in Ilulissat, Greenland, in 2008, to adopt a declaration pledging to settle these and similar issues in the spirit of goodwill and compromise based on bilateral talks.



Russia substantiates claims to extend hydrocarbon-rich Arctic shelf (Video)
http://www.pravdareport.com/news/russia/10-02-2016/133298-russia_arctic_shelf-0/

Currently, Russia claims to areas outside the established 200-mile economic zone. The zone covers the geomorphological shelf of the Russian Arctic marginal seas, a part of the Eurasian Basin (Nansen and Amundsen basins, the Gakkel Ridge) and the central part of the Amerasian basin as part of the Makarov basin and the Complex of Central Arctic submarine elevations.

According to Russian researchers, the constituent parts of the Complex of Central Arctic submarine elevations are of the continental nature and shall be categorized as natural components of the continental margin.



Russian Arctic Troops Hold Training With Husky Dogs, Reindeer (Video)
http://sputniknews.com/videoclub/20160201/1034026933/russian-arctic-troops.html

The Russian Defense Ministry published a video of troops of the Arctic Motorized Brigade of the Russian Northern Fleet conducting training exercises with husky dogs and reindeer near the village of Lovozero, in the Murmansk Region.

The training was organized as an introductory course for troops. The soldiers were practicing handling dogs and reindeer sleds. During the training temperatures reached —30 Celsius.
 
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