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

U.S. President Donald Trump suggested on Wednesday he had never heard of the rebel-held Syrian region of Idlib under threat from Syrian government and Russian forces until a supporter brought it up at a recent rally about a month ago.

If we can know and a Trump supporter can know about Idlib it is very difficult to believe Trump doesn't have a clue about what is going on in Syria. You would think his advisors would mention Idlib even if they twisted the truth about it. The buffoon image is starting to look like a reality show host LARP project. :-(
 
I was thinking about the sense of the word "buffoon" and if Trump is perceived like a buffoon that does not mean he is crazy himself. He is a buffoon: by him we laugh of the follies of the PTB. He talks in their name, and makes us see how really those who control this planet are crazy, liars, mad. Is Trump the buffoon of the "King" ? surely. He accepted, with his comedian talent, to be the buffoon. This is his role, his stage role of the comedy, his character in this crazy Comedia del arte. To be a buffoon you need talent, this is not an easy task.
 
I don't think he is a buffoon in the sense of being a nobody or being stupid/crazy. But there is something to him being a fool/jester. In Tarot the fool is the last (22, after The World/Universe) or the first (0) 'trump' or is unnumbered. The bible verse 'at the last trump' as mentioned in some session seems to affirm that he's a figure for these changing times, crossing worlds/boundaries/cycles, or being in between, also between people and elite, and between different cultures of the planet. At the same time, being orange :-D, peculiar, he is like nobody [else].
 
“I was at a meeting with lots of supporters and a woman stood up and she said there is a province in Syria with 3 million people right now. The Iranians, Russians and Syrians are surrounding that province and they are going to kill my sister and kill millions of people in order to get rid of 25,000 or 30,000 terrorists.

I said that’s not going to happen. I didn’t hear of Idlib province. I came back and picked up the Failing New York Times and opened it up ... not the front page, but there was a very big story and I said wow that’s the same story the woman told me and I found hard to believe and I said how, why would anyone do that?”

Trump said the story had indicated the offensive could start the next day and so he wrote his Twitter post and gave orders to his team, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and White House national security adviser John Bolton, to “not let it happen.”

“That doesn’t mean they can’t be selective, but don’t kill millions of people, and it stopped. Nobody is going to give me credit but that’s OK because the people know, but I’ve had more Syrians thank me for that. ... This was about four weeks ago I put that out,” Trump said.

Wow, this guy does think the world spins around him, doesn't he? Can someone explain to him that the offensive not taking place had nothing to do with him and everything to do with Turkey and Russia? Oh yeah, and he single-handedly defeated ISIS and brokered the peace in Korea, I forget. :rolleyes: It's hard to talk to people who confuse Austria with Australia, after all.
 
Note - Jaish al-Islam, one of Syria’s most prominent rebel groups (aided by Turkey) is ant-Assad, anti-Syrian Government.

September 27, 2018 - Far from home, a Syrian Rebel Group starts over
Far from home, a Syrian rebel group starts over | Reuters

NEAR AL-BAB, Syria - Syrian rebels forced from their towns when government forces retook eastern Ghouta near Damascus are starting over in the far north, aiming to build hundreds of homes for displaced fighters and civilians on opposition-held land near the Turkish border.

Jaish al-Islam, one of Syria’s most prominent rebel groups, likens the project to a new town for people from eastern Ghouta who have been living in camps since President Bashar al-Assad recaptured their area in April.

The project near the city of al-Bab points to preparations for a long stay in northern Syria, though Jaish al-Islam insists that the people displaced from eastern Ghouta will return. It is part of a wider effort by the group to recover in the north.

Jaish al-Islam commander Issam al-Buwaydani told Reuters in an interview that his group is reorganizing and rearming. Since arriving in the north, it is operating under the “National Army” umbrella - a Turkish-backed effort to unify numerous factions.

But civilian affairs are also a top priority: Buwaydani said a mall, a school, a mosque and a clinic would also be built at the construction site some 15 km (10 miles) from al-Bab.

“My entire combat group is working today in construction,” said Abu Jaafar al-Khouli, 25, one of the Jaish al-Islam fighters working at the construction site.

“I took part in many battles in Ghouta against the regime and the Nusra Front. Now, I have returned to my original profession,” added Khouli, a carpenter before Syria’s civil war.

The site, where the goal is to build 1,400 homes, is part of an arc of territory in the northwest at that forms the last major opposition-held area in Syria.

The eastern Ghouta rebels defended their stronghold on the Damascus outskirts through years of government siege until earlier this year, when Assad took back the area in a ferocious Russian-backed offensive.

When it fell, thousands of people opted to take safe passage to the northwest rather than live under government rule, a pattern seen elsewhere that has left the northwest crammed with anti-Assad fighters and dissidents from all over Syria.

WE WILL GO BACK”
Jaish al-Islam headed to the area north of Aleppo rather than Idlib province because of long-standing hostility toward the jihadist Nusra Front, also known as Tahrir al-Sham, which has a strong presence in Idlib.

The housing project is being built on land that officially belongs to the Syrian state. Permission was granted by the opposition-run council in al-Bab, Buwaydani said.

Financing is being provided by Ghouta merchants with no foreign funding, he said.

He noted that some displaced Syrians had been living under canvass for three or four years, adding: “Our view is that living in tents has a negative impact on society.”

The first phase of the project will lay foundations for homes. These will then be handed free of charge to Ghouta residents who will complete the construction with financial support from relatives outside Syria, he said. But this does not signal any acceptance that they will not return to Ghouta. “We will go back to our towns. We will liberate them and topple the terrorist tyrant,” Buwaydani said, referring to Assad.

Buwaydani says his fighters are getting financial aid from Turkey in the form of salaries.

He said the group is ready for new battles against the Syrian government or other enemies, including the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia which controls much of northern Syria. Turkey views the YPG as a national security threat, and its intervention in northern Syria has been driven largely by this concern.

Though Assad has crushed many areas of rebellion, Buwaydani still believes he can be toppled. “It is not impossible that Assad falls, especially given that the opposition forces are gathered today in one place,” he said. “This is a source of strength.”


September 27, 2018 - Easier movement in Assad's Syria bring some
Easier movement in Assad's Syria brings some economic reward | Reuters


Mohammed Abu al-Khair sends 25 buses a day from the Syrian capital Damascus to Aleppo, an eight-hour trip that until recently took up to two days.

The reduction in the journey time is a result of military gains by the Syrian army which have eased the movement of goods and people in government-held areas after years of paralysis because of the civil war that began in 2011.

The opening of roads that for years were unsafe has also brought some economic payoff for President Bashar al-Assad from the army’s military successes.

“Previously it could take two days to reach Aleppo. It was very dangerous for the drivers,” said Abu al-Khair, who oversees operations for Amir bus company, including from Damascus to Aleppo, a city 310 km (192 miles) north of Damascus which was an industrial hub before the war.

Vehicles now travel day and night, not only in the half of Syria controlled by Assad, but also to the quarter of it held by a U.S.-backed alliance of Kurdish and Arab militias.

Syria’s economy has been shattered. Whole towns lie in ruins, many workers have fled, been killed or gone to fight, and international sanctions hobble external trade.

But Assad is turning his attention toward a gradual economic recovery in areas he controls.

Finance Minister Mamoun Hamdan said last month that economic activity had picked up significantly, and that a move to issue foreign currency deposits was aimed at funding trade operations as the government moved towards reconstruction.

Internal Trade Minister Abdullah Gharbi told Reuters that internal trade had risen by more than 30 percent since the government retook major roads.

“It’s easier. Less time, less risk,” said Majd Wehbeh, executive manager of Compass Freight and Logistics in Damascus.

For much of the seven-year conflict safe, rapid travel was unthinkable as fighting cut major routes and splintered the country into dozens of warring fiefdoms.

Conditions are still difficult - far worse than the situation before 2011. Most borders are closed. Roads are controlled by numerous checkpoints at which, companies say, soldiers routinely demand bribes.

Yet the situation is incomparable to earlier periods of the war, when travelers might be kidnapped or killed in clashes, and many areas were unreachable.

DANGER
The old network of major highways is now open from the Lebanese and - currently closed - Jordanian border through Damascus, Homs and Hama, to the ports of Tartous and Latakia, and to Deir al-Zor in eastern Syria.

It had been difficult and dangerous to reach Deir al-Zor, deep in Islamic State territory. Abdullah al-Mallah, buying a bus ticket for his hometown of al-Mayadin near Deir al-Zor, said he now traveled between it and Damascus every week or two.

When he fled Islamic State rule for Damascus in 2016, it took weeks to cross the desert. It now takes nine hours and a $12 ticket. His family might join him for a trip soon, he said.

Farah bus company runs five or six buses there a day. It occasionally sent buses even when Islamic State controlled the desert, its manager Yahya Khatib said, charging $100 a ticket.

Sometimes it took a bus two months to find a safe route back to government territory. “There’s no danger now. Things are normal,” he said.

Assad’s military gains this year suddenly eased conditions, freight and bus companies said.

The recapture of eastern Ghouta, located by the main highway that runs north from Damascus, meant traffic no longer had to traverse a 90-minute diversion through the hills outside the capital.

Qadmous company carries cargo between Damascus and the coast. “During the war we reduced our work by a lot. Now it’s 40 or 50 percent higher,” said Michel Dagher, the company overseer.

He and the Compass Freight manager Wehbeh both said the number of army checkpoints, as well as journey times, had been reduced by a lot.

BLOCKED
International routes are still blocked. Syria’s only working border now is with Lebanon, though there are talks to reopen the Nassib frontier with Jordan. The main crossing with Iraq is blocked by a U.S. military base on the Damascus-Baghdad highway. Another crossing at Albu Kamal is open for military, but not general use. Syria’s border with Turkey is open only in rebel-held areas.

Internally, it is still split. From government territory, it is possible to travel into areas controlled by a Kurdish-led administration in the northeast. In Damascus, bus companies advertised daily journeys there.

But it is hard to reach rebel-held territory in Idlib and northern Aleppo. Travelers are dropped off near a safe foot corridor across the front line, a bus driver said.

As the internal economy gradually recovers, the government wants to shift more freight off the roads onto more efficient rail lines.

The main Damascus station reopened this month, but only to serve a short route to a trade fair. Najib Fares, head of Syrian railways, said work had started to restore the main line.

“We are maintaining, repairing and reconstructing the railway line... there is very major damage on this line,” he said.

As a train pulled into the platform behind Fares, a line of shell-smashed buildings stretched back to the horizon and rusted, shell-damaged carriages lay idle in a siding.

It was a reminder of how difficult Syria’s recovery will be, and that the war still intrudes in many regions.

The highways to Aleppo from Latakia and Hama in Idlib province remain in rebel hands and travel there now involves a long detour along narrow roads.

Kamal, a Hama-based bus driver who did not want to give his surname, said restoring that road would cut hours of journey time. Army victories had already saved hours in driving between Hama and Damascus, he said.

“It used to be one trip per day and then return the next day. Now I come and go in the same day. So do some of my passengers,” he said.

(Comment: Syrian railways lay in rubble, due to bombings and missile strikes, while the Countries who fund the terrorists Israel & Saudi Arabia just opened up new Bullet train terminals: )
Examples of continuous Israeli harassment vs Palestinians


Sept. 27, 2018 - Israel prepared to reopen Golan crossing with Syria: Defense chief
Israel prepared to reopen Golan crossing with Syria: defense chief | Reuters


Israel is ready to reopen a crossing point into the Syrian-controlled Golan Heights now that Syrian government forces have regained control from rebels, Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said on Thursday.

But Lieberman, on a visit to the Israeli-held side of the Quneitra crossing, said any resumption of operations at the facility depended on Syria.

“The fact that we have come here, to Alpha Gate, and as far as we are concerned UNDOF forces have begun to operate and patrol with the Israeli military’s assistance, says that we are ready for the crossing to reopen,” he told reporters, in comments distributed by his ministry.

Lieberman was referring to the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force, whose monitoring operations in a demilitarized zone established in 1974 between the Israeli-occupied Golan and the Syrian sector were disrupted by Syria’s civil war.

At the moment, the ball is in the Syrian court,” Lieberman said.

Military police from Russia, a major ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, have been patrolling on the Syrian side of Quneitra, where Lieberman said Syrian police and customs officials were also present.

In the past, Lieberman said, traffic through Quneitra mainly comprised shipments into Syria of apples grown by Druze farmers on the Israeli-controlled Golan - and the entry of brides for partners on both sides of the armistice line.


Israel captured the Golan Heights in the 1967 Middle East war and fought Syria again on the strategic plateau in a 1973 conflict.


Sept. 27, 2018 - US-led fight on Islamic State killed more than 1,100 civilians: Pentagon
U.S.-led fight on Islamic State killed more than 1,100 civilians: Pentagon | Reuters


More than 1,100 civilians have been killed in U.S.-led strikes against Islamic State targets in Iraq and Syria since the operation began in 2014, the U.S. military said on Thursday.

The coalition fighting Islamic State militants said in a statement that during the month of August it had determined that an additional 53 civilians had been killed unintentionally, bringing the total to at least 1,114 civilian deaths since August 2014.

The military’s official tally is far below those of outside organizations. The monitoring group Airwars says at least 6,575 civilians have been killed by coalition strikes.

Twenty civilians were killed in a strike on Islamic State “fighting positions,” explosives factory and a command and control center in May 2017 near Mosul, Iraq, the coalition said.

“We continue to employ thorough and deliberate targeting and strike processes to minimize the impact of our operations on civilian populations and infrastructure,” the military’s statement said.

The U.S.-led coalition, along with local partners, has largely cleared the militant group from Iraq and Syria but remains concerned about its resurgence.


Thu Sep 27, 2018 - Turkey Transfers Foreign Terrorist Commanders from Idlib
Farsnews

The non-Syrian commanders of the terrorist groups have been relocated to Turkey from Idlib province by Ankara as other militants are preparing for a battle against the Syrian army.

The Arabic-language website of Sputnik news agency quoted local sources in Idlib as saying on Thursday that Ankara has transferred a number of the most notorious foreign commanders of the terrorists along with their family members from Jisr al-Shoqour in Idlib and Northern Lattakia to Turkey.

Meantime, a number of commanders and local members of Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at (the Levant Liberation Board or the Al-Nusra Front) have also been able to flee to Turkey from the towns of Sarmada and Atmeh by paying a Turkish businessman $10,000 for a commander and $5,000 for low-ranking militants.

The sources said that the foreign terrorists are still stationed in the villages, towns and occupied positions, adding that the foreign terrorist groups, including Turkistanti party, Ajnad al-Qoqaz and Horas al-Din, have strengthened their military preparedness to fight against the Syrian army.

Also, sources close to the terrorists' commanders in Idlib have said that Tahrir al-Sham commander Mohammed al-Julani is due to declare his position on the Sochi agreement between Turkey and Russia on a demilitarized zone in Idlib soon.

Relevant reports said on Monday that Tahrir al-Sham was preparing for an imminent offensive against the Syrian Army in Idlib province to sabotage implementation of Sochi agreement, an Arab media outlet reported.

Syria's al-Watan daily quoted well-informed sources as reporting that Tahrir al-Sham has been preparing its gunmen in the last two days to kick off a heavy attack on the army in Idlib.

It further said that Tahrir al-Sham has kept fighters on alert along the entire roads to Idlib, specially along the road between Ban al-Hawa passageway at border with Syria and the town of Saraqib in Southeastern Idlib, adding that the terrorist group has also dispatched a large volume of military hardware to its positions in Southeastern Idlib, the town of Kobani in Jabal al-Turkmen in Northeastern Lattakia.

It went on to say that the terrorists of Horas al-Deen have opposed strongly the Sochi agreement and called on the other terrorist groups to join attacks on the army rapidly to push the Sochi agreement into failure.

The daily further said that a fresh wave of differences have erupted among terrorists over the Sochi agreement and demilitarized zone in Idlib.

Terrorists of the National Liberation Front on Sunday opposed an agreement endorsed by Russia and Turkey over the Northwestern province of Idlib following a similar opposition by Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at and several other terrorist groups.


Thu Sep 27, 2018 - Terrorists' Military Commander Killed in Aleppo as Internal Tensions Hike
Farsnews

A military commander of terrorist groups was assassinated in Western Aleppo as tensions heightened between Nouralddeen al-Zinki and Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at (the Levant Liberation Board or the Al-Nusra Front).

Field sources in Western Aleppo reported on Thursday that Nouralddeen al-Zinki commander Mohammad Ahmad al-Khatib was killed along with one of his aides by unknown gunmen in the town of Kafr Nasih.

Elsewhere, Turkey-backed Nouralddeen al-Zinki group affiliated to the National Liberation Front terrorist group arrested three militants for affiliation to Tahrir al-Sham in the town of Dar al-Izza in Western Aleppo.

After the development, Tahrir al-Sham terrorists sent their military equipment to the regions near Dar al-Izza, detaining a number of Nouralddeen al-Zinki militants in the village of Tal Adah in Western Aleppo.

Tahrir al-Sham militants also launched heavy attacks on the positions of Nouralddeen al-Zinki in Dar al-Izza with mortar fire.

Based on the report hundreds of residents of Dar al-Izza have staged protest rallies against Nouralddeen al-Zinki terrorists.

In a relevant development on Tuesday, one of the notorious foreign commanders of Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at was gunned down by unidentified assailants in Southern Idlib.

Abu Talhah Araqi, a notorious Iraqi commander of Tahrir al-Sham, and his aide were killed after unknown attackers opened fire at them near the village of al-Tah in Southern Idlib.

In the meantime, a number of people were killed or wounded after a bomb went off near the town of Saraqib in Southeastern Idlib.

On Monday, Sayaf, one of the notorious commanders of Horas al-Deen terrorist group, was gunned down by unknown assailants in the village of Kansafrah Northwest of the town of Kafr Nubl in Southern Idlib.

In the meantime, two gunmen of the National Liberation Front were killed after unknown raiders targeted their position in the village of al-Habit in Southern Idlib.

Also, several gunmen of Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at and National Liberation Front sustained injuries in infighting between the tow rival groups in the village of Ma'arat Harmah in Southern Idlib.


2018-09-27 - Turkish-backed rebels and Kurdish forces clash near Manbij
Breaking: Turkish-backed rebels and Kurdish forces clash near Manbij

The Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA) and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) reportedly clashed outside the town of Manbij this morning after a relatively quiet few months.

According to local activists, the FSA and SDF clashed inside a town located north Manbij, as both forces exchanged gunfire and artillery shells. No ground has been gained by either side, despite the intense exchange.

Currently, the U.S. Coalition and Turkish military patrol the Manbij area as part of a deal that was established between Washington and Ankara earlier this year.


2018-09-27 - Russian, Iranian security chiefs meet to discuss Syria
Russian, Iranian security chiefs meet to discuss Syria

The Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev and Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani met on Wednesday evening to discuss a number of topics, including the war in Syria.

“Nikolai Patrushev and Ali Shamkhani shared opinions on the situation in the Middle East and the Syrian settlement regarding the recent summit between the Russian, Iranian and Turkish leaders,” the office of Nikolai Patrushev said on Wednesday evening, as quoted by Tass News Agency.

The two parties also discussed issues of Russian-Iranian cooperation in the sphere of security.

This meeting between the Russian and Iranian security chiefs comes as both nations aid Turkey in implementing the Idlib buffer zone agreement.


2018-09-27 - Russia rejected Israel’s offer to send high-level security delegation to Moscow: Haaretz
Russia rejected Israel's offer to send high-level security delegation to Moscow: Haaretz

Russia rejected an offer from the Israeli government to send a high-level security delegation to Moscow after the downing of the IL-20 reconnaissance aircraft on September 17th, the Haaretz newspaper reported this week.

The Haaretz report said that the Russian Federation rejected an offer by the Israeli government to send a high-level security delegation that would have been led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Defense Avigdor Lieberman.

The report added that Russia told Israel they prefer to keep their contacts with the latter on a professional level, adding that there is no need to send such a delegation to Moscow. :-D


2018-09-27 - Russia to supply Syria with up to eight S-300 units – report
Russia to supply Syria with up to eight S-300 units - report

Russia is planning to supply Syria with up to eight S-300 air defense systems, the Russian newspaper ‘Kommersant’ reported on Tuesday.

According to the Kommersant report, Russia will deliver at least two and up to four S-300 systems in the next two weeks.

The Russian military will then transfer another four S-300 systems in the weeks that follow, as they increase the strength of the Syrian air defenses.

The Kommersant article added that the Russian military is planning to deploy the first S-300 systems in the Latakia Governorate; however, the others will be placed around the country.


2018-09-27 - Syrian Army to receive short-range defense missiles along with S-300 system: report
Syrian Army to receive short-range defense missiles along with S-300 system: report


The Syrian Arab Army (SAA) will be receiving a batch of short-range defense missiles, along with the S-300 system from the Russian military, the Al-Watan newspaper reported this morning.

According to the Al-Watan report, the Syrian military will be receiving Russian and Belarusian defense missiles, including the Pantsir-1S system and Pechora-2M.

The Al-Watan report did go into detail regarding this alleged supply of short-range defense missiles; however, a new shipment of the Pantsir-1S system is not surprising, given the Syrian military is already receiving the S-300.
 
I was thinking about the sense of the word "buffoon" and if Trump is perceived like a buffoon that does not mean he is crazy himself. He is a buffoon: by him we laugh of the follies of the PTB. He talks in their name, and makes us see how really those who control this planet are crazy, liars, mad. Is Trump the buffoon of the "King" ? surely. He accepted, with his comedian talent, to be the buffoon. This is his role, his stage role of the comedy, his character in this crazy Comedia del arte. To be a buffoon you need talent, this is not an easy task.

Let's hope he is just on the road of The Way of the Fool. I wouldn't say he is not intelligent but many times his comic character seems to fit.
 
Sept. 28, 2018 - Russia’s Lavrov to address UN General Assembly
Russia’s Lavrov to address UN General Assembly


In his speech, minister will focus on enhancing the UN central role in global affairs.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will wrap up his participation in the United Nations General Assembly’s high-level week on Friday.

The key part of the program will be the top Russian diplomat’s address at the UN tribune. Lavrov is scheduled to give a news conference in the afternoon and hold a number of bilateral meetings, including with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem.

In his speech, Lavrov will focus on enhancing the UN central role in global affairs. The Foreign Ministry earlier said that the UN remains a unique platform for an equal dialogue aimed at developing decisions taking into account all viewpoints. Moscow stresses that any attempts to shatter the UN authority and legitimacy and erode or substitute its prerogatives are dangerous and could dismantle the entire system of international relations.

Lavrov is expected to outline Russia’s stance on supporting the efforts on reforming the UN and peacekeeping efforts, and emphasize that the glorification of Nazism and rewriting history, most notably the outcome of World War II, is unacceptable.

Russia’s top diplomat will also speak about the situation in Syria, the Korean Peninsula and non-proliferation.

Over the past four days, Lavrov has held more than 20 meetings with heads of state and government and foreign ministers
from Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America. Lavrov met with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic, North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, and NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg.

Lavrov also took part in a ministerial meeting of participants of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) on the Iranian nuclear program, and addressed conferences on peacekeeping efforts and the UN Security Council’s meetings devoted to countering the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and the North Korean issue.


Sept. 27, 2018 - Lavrov presents 10-volume collection of Primakov’s works to UN secretary general
Lavrov presents 10-volume collection of Primakov’s works to UN secretary general

1203863.jpg

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres
© Aleksandr Shcherbak/TASS

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has presented ten volumes of works written by the late Russian politician and diplomat Yevgeny Primakov to United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres, a TASS correspondent reported on Thursday.

The ceremony was held at the United Nations secretariat. "I would like to present you ten volumes of works written by Yevgeny Primakov, who was Russia’s foreign minister, prime minister, director of the Foreign Intelligence Service, member of the Russian Academy of Sciences and one of my teachers at the foreign ministry," Lavrov said. "I hope these books will find their place in the UN library."

In response, Guterres said he had known Primakov personally and remembered him very well.

Primakov wrote a number of research works and essays on issues of the Middle East politics and Russia’s foreign policy. The ten-volume collection of works was published to mark the first anniversary of his death.


Sept. 29, 2018 - Trump invited to visit Russia - Lavrov
Trump invited to visit Russia - Lavrov

US President Donald Trump has been invited to visit Russia, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Friday.

"President [of Russia Vladimir] Putin has received an invitation from President Trump [to visit the United States]. President Trump has received an invitation to visit Russia as well," he told a news conference after his participation in the high-level debates at the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly.

"When everyone is ready and when possible dates are suggested, we will be able to decide," he said.

Earlier, when asked by TASS on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, Trump said he was looking forward another meeting with the Russia leader but no date has been appointed so far.

The two leaders had their first full-format meeting in the Finnish capital city Helsinki on July 16.


Sept. 29, 2018 - Syria hopes to close its sky for Israeli warplanes thanks to Russian S-300 systems
Syria hopes to close its sky for Israeli warplanes thanks to Russian S-300 systems

Damascus hopes that Russian S-300 missile defense systems will help it close its sky for Israeli warplanes, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said on Friday after a meeting with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov.

"I hope so," he said answering a corresponding question.

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said after a meeting with Lavrov that Damascus hopes to receive the S-300 missile defense systems within two weeks.


Sept. 28, 2018 - Expert: Electronic warfare system in Syria capable of tracking planes in Europe, Israel
Expert: Electronic warfare system in Syria capable of tracking planes in Europe, Israel

Once a plane is spotted at an airdrome, the reinforced radio-electronic warfare system automatically assigns a target number to it and offers various options.

Russian reinforced electronic warfare system in Syria is capable of tracking planes at airdromes in Europe and Israel, Vladimir Mikheyev, an adviser to the first deputy director general of Russia’s Concern Radio-Electronic Technologies (KRET), told TASS on Friday.

According to Mikheyev, to reinforce the system’s aviation component specialized jammers could be deployed along with ground-based systems. "It is also planned to increase the naval taskforce with electronic warfare and air defense systems," he said.

"And all of this will be integrated under a common control system and we will know not only that someone has entered the airspace in this region but also that somewhere a plane is only operating on the runway, be it in Israel or Saudi Arabia or even in Europe, and we understand that is under control of the integrated aid defense system," he said.

Once a plane is spotted at an airdrome, the reinforced radio-electronic warfare system automatically assigns a target number to it and offers various options: "either radio-electronic reconnaissance, attenuation or electronic suppression or even, if we see that the situation is critical, fire to effect," he said.

Following the loss of the Russian Ilyushin-20 plane in Syria that was used by Israeli warplanes as cover to avert Syrian missile defense, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu pledged that radio-electronic warfare systems in Syria would be reinforced.


Sept. 28, 2018 - Russian jets scrambled 13 times in past week to intercept foreign aircraft
Russian jets scrambled 13 times in past week to intercept foreign aircraft

Russian jets were scrambled 13 times in the past week to prevent state border violations, the Russian Armed Forces’ Krasnaya Zvezda daily reported on Friday.

According to the data provided by the daily, 30 foreign aircraft have been registered on reconnaissance flights over the past week along Russia’s borders.

The daily reported that there were no violations of Russia’s airspace.


2018-09-28 - Large Russian cargo ship heads to Syria with possible S-300 system on board
Large Russian cargo ship heads to Syria with possible S-300 system on board


A large Russian cargo ship made its way through the busy Bosphorus Strait this week as it heads to the Port of Tartous in western Syria.

According to Yoruk Isik of the Bosphorus Observer, the Russian government chartered Ro-Ro Sparta III is making its way from the port-city of Novorosiysk to Tartous.

Isik said that this large Russian cargo ship might be transporting the S-300 air defense system to the Syrian military.

On Monday, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced their decision to deliver the S-300 air defense system to the Syrian military.


2018-09-27 - US general concerned Syria’s S-300 system will create ‘unstable conditions’
US general concerned Syria's S-300 system will create 'unstable conditions'

During a House Armed Services briefing, Pentagon officials were asked to comment on the recent move by the Russian Federation to supply Syria with the S-300 air defense system.

The Deputy Director of the Joint Staff, Brigadier General Scott Benedict said that this move create “unstable conditions” inside of Syria.

“The introduction of more of these systems only serves to create more unstable conditions and the likelihood of miscalculation such as which we tragically saw earlier in the week with the Russian plane being shot down by the Syrians,” Benedict said, speaking to US lawmakers on Wednesday.

“My greatest concern is that the more things we’re putting in to this small area, particularly as we’re starting to close in on the north part of Syria, the more dangerous the entire situation becomes because of the instability,” the officer added.

The Russian Federation made the decision to supply the Syrian military with the S-300 system after the downing of the IL-20 reconnaissance aircraft off the coast of Latakia on Monday, September 17th.

Despite Israel’s claims that the Syrian military was to blame, the Russian Ministry of Defense held the former responsible for the IL-20’s subsequent demise early last week.


2018-09-28 - New satellite image reveals massive Russian warplane buildup at Syrian base
https://www.almasdarnews.com/articl...sive-russian-warplane-buildup-at-syrian-base/


A new satellite image revealed a large buildup of Russian warplanes at the Hmeymim Military Airport in western Syria.

Based on the image released by ISI research group, seven Russian IL-76 cargo planes and more than 30 fighter jets were present at the Hmeymim Airport this week.

Furthermore, most of the Russian warplanes in the satellite image above are Su-30 and Su-35 fighter jets.

The recent buildup of Russian warplanes at the Hmeymim Airport comes just days after their Ministry of Defense announced that they would be delivering the S-300 air defense system to Syria.
 
Sept. 29, 2018 - Trump invited to visit Russia - Lavrov
Trump invited to visit Russia - Lavrov

US President Donald Trump has been invited to visit Russia, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Friday.

"President [of Russia Vladimir] Putin has received an invitation from President Trump [to visit the United States]. President Trump has received an invitation to visit Russia as well," he told a news conference after his participation in the high-level debates at the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly.


Russia’s Lavrov meets with Henry Kissinger at UN

Meeting.jpg

The media were not invited

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Thursday had a meeting with the former US Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger [in office from 1973 through 1977], the Russian mission to the UN tweeted in Facebook.

Lavrov and Kissinger met on the sidelines of the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly.

The media were not invited. The mission uploaded the pictures from the media on to social networks later.

During his time at the post of the Secretary of State and later on as an expert, Kissinger has spoken in favor of pragmatic approaches to foreign policy that would be based on national interests and would not be pegged to ideology.

He visited Russia in the summer of 2017 to take part in the Primakov Readings expert forum. During the trip, he had a meeting with President Vladimir Putin.

 
While I remain undecided about whether a thread just with artistic commentary on the conflict in Syria could hold itself, after going through the comic pictures at الهيئة العامة للإذاعة والتلفزيون - سورية which is the General Organisation of Radio and TV in Syria, I have selected some from the last about 13 months. The selection is centered around commentary on the still ongoing conflict and have left out drawings made to comment on the Rammadan, Mother's day, Teacher's day, Christmas, New Year and so forth. The grouping is not chronological, but based on the topic and personal preference. There could be other ways of presenting the sequence, and some drawings may be relevant for more than one group.

At the end of this first sequence there is a comment on the UN. If anyone is surprised, they should watch a few of the many, many meetings in the UNSC on the topic of Syria. The Syrian presentations are very well qualified, but meet a lot of resistance from the US Governments and the mainly NATO states, it controls or can pressure into compliance in the name of its "American values".
 

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I don't think he is a buffoon in the sense of being a nobody or being stupid/crazy. But there is something to him being a fool/jester. In Tarot the fool is the last (22, after The World/Universe) or the first (0) 'trump' or is unnumbered. The bible verse 'at the last trump' as mentioned in some session seems to affirm that he's a figure for these changing times, crossing worlds/boundaries/cycles, or being in between, also between people and elite, and between different cultures of the planet. At the same time, being orange :-D, peculiar, he is like nobody [else].

I sometimes see Trump as a jester - entertaining but deeply serious - on the other end. It might be his way of "letting off stress" but then maybe, it's primary intent is to keep everyone guessing what he's thinking and what his next move might be? In another way, by keeping many off-guard - they think he's an idiot and are more prone to slip up, showing their true colors?

If the rumors have any substance that Trump is in league with MENA and above in IQ, chances are he's mentally ten steps or more ahead of the shenanigans being played on him and in turn, is mocking them - by coming off "silly" and in some instances - "really stupid" in behavior? In the meantime, he's working behind the scenes, slowly making progress on his own agenda's?



September, 26, 2018 - Trump Taunted on Social Media over Remarks at UN Speech
Trump Taunted on Social Media over Remarks at UN Speech - Tasnim News Agency

Many twitter users reacted differently to Trump’s claim at the UN that, "In less than two years, my administration has accomplished more than almost any administration in the history of our country,"


September, 30, 2018 - Trump Says He and North Korean Leader Kim ‘Fell in Love’
Trump Says He and North Korean Leader Kim ‘Fell in Love’



US President Donald Trump told a cheering crowd at a campaign rally that there was once tough talk “back and forth” between him and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un “and then we fell in love.”

Trump said at the Saturday night rally in West Virginia: “He wrote me beautiful letters and they’re great letters. We fell in love.”

He joked about criticism he would get from the news media for making a comment some would consider “unpresidential” and for being so positive about the North Korean leader.

“Why has President Trump given up so much?” Trump said in his mock “news anchor” voice. “I didn’t give up anything.”

He noted that Kim is interested in a second meeting after their initial meeting in Singapore in June was hailed by Trump as a big step toward denuclearization of North Korea.

But denuclearization negotiations have stalled.
 
The U.S. is not changing any in the Trade War strategy it seems. Not a big surprise at this juncture...

Puppet Masters
vader.png

US hints at naval blockade of Russian energy exports - Moscow warns would be "an act of war"

Tyler Durden
ZeroHedge
Tue, 02 Oct 2018 15:00 UTC


© State Impact Pennsylvania
Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke speaking at an industry event on Friday, September 28, 2018.
In a interview about fracking and the implications of making the United States less dependent on foreign sources of energy, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke told the Washington Examiner that the US Navy has the ability to blockade Russia from controlling energy supplies in the Middle East.

"The United States has that ability, with our Navy, to make sure the sea lanes are open, and, if necessary, to blockade... to make sure that their energy does not go to market," Zinke said on Friday at a Consumer Energy Alliance event in Pittsburg.

The comments came as Russia, Germany and other European partners move forward on the Nord Stream II pipeline - something President Trump has vehemently opposed because of the leverage it gives Russia over Europe, and something which US officials have discussed sanctions over if Russia decides to play dirty with the pipeline.

Zinke continued, "Russia is a one trick pony," and explained Russia's ability to sell energy is paramount to its economic survival: "I believe the reason they are in the Middle East is they want to broker energy just like they do in eastern Europe, the southern belly of Europe," he said.

While Russia has been engaged in military action in Syria since 2015 at the request of the Syrian government, the West has long accused Moscow of seeking a permanent presence in the Middle East to ensure oil and gas access.

In the process, Moscow and Tehran have grown closer as the two come under aggressive US sanctions and gained international pariah status. Secretary of the Interior Zinke explained of the Iran situation: "National security-wise, how are you going to deal with Iran?" Zinke asked. "Well, there are two ways."

"There is the military option, which I would rather not. And there is the economic option," he said. "The economic option on Iran and Russia is, more or less, leveraging and replacing fuels."

He added, "We can do that because... the United States is the largest producer of oil and gas."

Understandably, Zinke's statements provoked an angry response from Moscow, which equated a potential maritime blockade to an "act of war," while calling the internal secretary's assumptions "nonsense."

"A US blockade of Russia would be equal to a declaration of war under international law," Russian Senator Aleksey Pushkov said, commenting on Zinke's words. Russia does not currently export any energy to the Middle East, which itself is a major oil exporting region. The whole idea is an "absolute nonsense," the Senator argued.

* * *

Meanwhile such US Naval jostling to keep sea lanes open in contested regions is already happening in the South China Sea, where China's series of man made islands are being used of Beijing to expand and claim territory.

According to Reuters the latest incident occurred early Sunday:
A U.S. Navy destroyer sailed near islands claimed by China in the South China Sea on Sunday, a U.S. official told Reuters, potentially angering Beijing at a time of tense relations between the two countries.​
And just last week Beijing denounced recent US-B52 bomber flyovers of the South China Sea and East China Sea, calling the military maneuvers "provocative".

The UN estimates that one-third of global shipping passes through the expansive area claimed by China - and crucially there's thought to exist significant untapped oil and natural gas reserves.

There's been a series of incidents over the summer involving US aircraft and ships, as well as that of regional powers like the Philippines, which have involved Chinese military warning off the foreign vessels and aircraft.

Also last week China denied a US warship's planned port visit to Hong Kong in what was a stunning symbolic rebuke in response to new tariffs enacted by the Trump White House.

With Russia now maintaining its own naval build-up in the Mediterranean after repeat US threats to attack Syria over the past month, we could soon see more confrontation over shipping lanes in the region and the West seeks to disrupt Moscow's access to Middle East energy markets.

Comment: If the US is hoping to get some bargaining leverage with such a veiled threat, they are mistaken. Between China and Russia, shipping lanes in the Pacific will be very well defended. Let's hope the US doesn't do anything stupid.
 
Source: ‘49 pieces of hardware’: Syria gets S-300 missile system & more from Russia in wake of Il-20 downing

The S-300 air defense system and dozens of additional hardware pieces have been delivered to the Syrian military to boost security of Russian personnel there, Russian Defense Minister, Sergey Shoigu, told President Vladimir Putin.
“We have completed the delivery of the S-300 system,” Shoigu said Tuesday. The hardware supplied to Syria consisted of 49 pieces of military equipment, including radars, control vehicles and four launchers, he added.

Well, things may get more difficult for the US and Israel, as the S-300 are now delivered and soon to be operational.
Let's see if there will be any other distraction during that time interval.

#art
 
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