Regional geopolitics

[londontsi]

Re: Regional geopolitics

Russia names Soros Foundation undesirable foreign organization

Russia names Soros Foundation undesirable foreign organization
November 30, 2015 - 16:42 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - The Russian Prosecutor General’s Office has recognized George Soros’s Open Society Institute and another affiliated organization as undesirable groups, forbidding Russian citizens and organizations to participate in any of their projects, RT reports.

In a statement released on Monday, November 30, prosecutors said the activities of the Open Society Institute and the Open Society Institute Assistance Foundation were a threat to the foundations of Russia’s Constitutional order and national security. They added that the Justice Ministry would be duly informed about these conclusions and would add the two groups to Russia’s list of undesirable foreign organizations.

Prosecutors launched a probe into the activities of the two organizations - both sponsored by the well-known US financier George Soros - in July this year, after Russian senators approved the so-called “patriotic stop-list” of 12 groups that required immediate attention over their supposed anti-Russian activities. Other groups on the list included the National Endowment for Democracy; the International Republican Institute; the National Democratic Institute; the MacArthur Foundation and Freedom House.

In late July, the Russian Justice Ministry recognized the U.S. National Endowment for Democracy as an undesirable group after prosecutors discovered the US NGO had spent millions on attempts to question the legitimacy of Russian elections and tarnish the prestige of national military service.

The Law on Undesirable Foreign Organizations came into force in early June this year. It requires the Prosecutor General’s Office and the Foreign Ministry to draw up an official list of undesirable foreign organizations and outlaw their activities. Once a group is recognized as undesirable, its assets in Russia must be frozen, its offices closed and the distribution of any of its materials must be banned.

If the ban is violated, the personnel of the outlawed group and any Russian citizens who cooperate with them could face heavy fines, or even prison terms in the case of repeated or aggravated offences

As we all know Soros is j3wis.

A small clip as to his role during the holocaust.

Just for the record Lragir is a Soros funded "news" and comments or ideas disseminater.

PS Just to get Haykakan and Vrej going !!!!

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[Haykakan]

Re: Regional geopolitics

TERRORISTS ACKNOWLEDGE DEFEAT IN ALEPPO

18:38, 30 Nov 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan

The Takfiri terrorist groups acknowledged on their social media pages
the death of a number of their members, including senior commanders,
in Syrian military operations in Aleppo province, admitting that they
retreated from vast areas on Monday, Fars News Agency reports.

The so-called "storming leader of special forces in Bab Amre
battalion", Ali al-Daloub al-Fa'ouri, and the senior commander of
al-Sham Legion, al-Zaher Baibars al- Salmouni, have been identified
among the dead, the terrorist groups said.

The terrorist groups also said Amer al-Omar from the so-called Jaish
al-Sunna and Jumaa al-Omar of the so-called Islamic Union of Ajnad
al-Sham have been killed in the Monday clashes.

The terrorists confirmed that they had to retreat from their positions
following heavy airstrikes and massive ground operations by the Syrian
army and popular forces.

Reports from Northern Aleppo province said on Monday that militant
groups have sustained heavy casualties in the joint offensive of the
Syrian Army and popular forces on their concentration centers.

The militants' gathering centers and defense lines in Bashkoy and
Hraytan came under attack by the pro-government forces, whose
operations in the Northern part of the country pinned down the
terrorist groups in their vulnerable positions.

Battlefield reports said the pro-government troops have seized a
large number of weapons and military equipment in the attack.

The Syrian army and its allies have gained the upper-hand in different
parts of Aleppo city and province in the last two months. Reports
said earlier today that the Syrian army repelled the militant groups'
offensive on their military checkpoint Southeast of Aleppo province,
and killed or wounded at least 50 of them in their counter-assault.

The Syrian Army's military checkpoint near al-Aziziyah came under
attack of the militant groups, who failed to infiltrate into the
government defense lines and fled the battlefront after leaving
scores of dead or wounded members as a result of the Syrian forces'
counter-assault.

http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13940909001240

http://www.armradio.am/en/2015/11/30/terrorists-acknowledge-defeat-in-aleppo/

[Vrej1915]

Re: Regional geopolitics

[londontsi]

Re: Regional geopolitics

Erdoğan tells Nazarbayev he’s ready to meet Putin any time

http://www.todayszaman.com/diplomacy_erdogan-tells-nazarbayev-hes-ready-to-meet-putin-any-time_405709.html

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has phoned the president of Kazakhstan, telling his counterpart that he is ready to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin at any time, according to the Kazakh Presidential Press Office, according to a report by the private Cihan News Agency.

Erdoğan called Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, according to a statement on the presidential website of the Kazakh Presidency, to discuss bilateral ties as well as the Russian Su-24 jet that Turkey shot down near the Syrian border last week........

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[Artashes]

Re: Regional geopolitics

Erdoğan tells Nazarbayev he’s ready to meet Putin any time

http://www.todayszaman.com/diplomacy_erdogan-tells-nazarbayev-hes-ready-to-meet-putin-any-time_405709.html

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has phoned the presideHhnt of Kazakhstan, telling his counterpart that he is ready to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin at any time, according to the Kazakh Presidential Press Office, according to a report by the private Cihan News Agency.

Erdoğan called Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, according to a statement on the presidential website of the Kazakh Presidency, to discuss bilateral ties as well as the Russian Su-24 jet that Turkey shot down near the Syrian border last week........

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If I'm reading the big print between the lines correct, erdotwits readiness to talk to Putin means nothing. He's already expressed that and been rejected. The lack of an apology coupled with the fraudulent reason he put forth has caused Putin to ignore the hominoid.
The USA has known for years of the illicit oil line & capitalization by turc of stolen oil. That makes USA complicit in that criminal activity. USA has known the complicity between all the terrorist groups including their so called "moderates. The USA has been fostering ALL terrorist in the region and knows where every safe haven for them is. This is a straight forward criminal act by ALL west/sood/yahood with only ?plausible deniability ??? as a cover.
Russia after the killing of its pilot and marine has stiffened its resolve.
I read no meeting between the two.

[Vrej1915]

Re: Regional geopolitics

Russia says Turkey 'shot down plane for IS oil'
BBC

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-34970121

Russia has accused Turkey of shooting down its warplane near the border with Syria in order to protect its oil trade with the Islamic State (IS) group.

Speaking at international talks on climate change in Paris, Russian President Vladimir Putin called the downing of the plane a "huge mistake".
Turkey has denied any ties to IS and is part of a US-led coalition carrying out air strikes against the militant group.
The Turkish government has refused to apologise for the incident.
One Russian pilot was killed and the other rescued following the crash on 24 November. Turkey says the jet entered its air space - an accusation Russia denies.
On Monday the US state department said evidence from Turkish and US sources indicated the aircraft did violate Turkish airspace.
Spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau said the US wanted to "encourage dialogue now... we need to de-escalate the situation".

Russia has been carrying out air strikes in Syria, targeting rebels against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, including IS.
Turkey is a vehement opponent of Mr Assad and has been accused of turning a blind eye to jihadist fighters crossing from its territory into Syria.
Until a few months ago, Turkey was reluctant to play an active role in the coalition against IS. However, in August it allowed the US-led coalition to begin using its airbase at Incirlik.
Russia has imposed sanctions on Turkey over the downing of the plane, including restrictions on imports of Turkish food and an end to visa-free travel.
IS earns much of its money from illegal sales of oil - however, Turkey has staunchly denied that it is involved in the trade.
"We have every reason to think that the decision to shoot down our plane was dictated by the desire to protect the oil supply lines to Turkish territory," Mr Putin said at a news conference in Paris on Monday.
He said Russia had received more information to show that IS oil was passing through Turkish territory.

Earlier Turkish Prime Minster Ahmet Davutoglu said the incident was unfortunate but that Turkey had a right and duty to protect its airspace and would not apologise.
Russia said on Monday it would ban mainly imports of agricultural products, vegetables and fruits from Turkey, although it may delay the restrictions for several weeks to "ease inflationary pressure".
Turkish industrial goods would not be banned for now but future expansion of the sanctions was not ruled out, officials said.
Turkey and Russia have important economic links. Russia is Turkey's second-largest trading partner, while more than three million Russian tourists visited Turkey last year.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his country will act "patiently, not emotionally" before deciding its response to the economic sanctions.

[Vrej1915]

Re: Regional geopolitics

NB: just remind, nothing irreversible is yet done.
Both sides are still vociferating, having in mind return to "good partenership"...
So let's scrutinise, but no need to jump 2 feets joined.
Yet nothing irreversible done....
And all these numbers must just remind us the quality of their relations.

=========

Russia crisis may cost Antalya $6.5bn
30.11.15

http://www.tert.am/en/news/2015/11/30/antalya-possible-losses/1860295

A group of Republican People’s Party’s (CHP) deputies from Antalya have said that the Mediterranean resort may lose $6.5 billion if the tension between Turkey and Russia escalates.

An a joint press conference on Novemmber 30, CHP Antalya deputies Mustafa Akaydin, Chetin Osman Budak, Niyazi Nefi Kara and Devrim Kok underlined the negative effects of the crisis over Antalya’s tourism and agriculture sectors.

“Some 40,000 Russians live in Antalya and 200,000 Turks in Russia…The crisis between Turkey and Russia must be resolved as soon as possible,” said Akaydin.

He noted an escalation of the crisis will cost Antalya $6 billion in tourism and $500 million in the agricultural sector.

Akaydin noted the Gazipasha vegetable and fruit wholesale market has already been shut down and the
oversupply can be delivered to poor people by the state.

“Our expectation in the medium-term is to continue to make exports to Russia through third parties and to create new markets for the agriculturalists in Antalya,” he said.

Budak said Antalya has already lost some 25 percent of its tourism income over this year due to economic problems in Russia, but the recent crisis with Russia will negatively affect the whole country.

“Turkey has obtained around $6 billion in export revenue and $7 billion in tourism revenue from Russia. There is also extensive suitcase trade traffic between the two countries. Turkey’s suitcase trade volume already declined from $8.5 billion in 2013 to $6 billion in 2014. Turkey can lose up to $20 billion, 3 percent of its GDP, a year if the crisis escalates with Russia,” Budak said.

Kok said some three ships with 750 containers that are loaded with vegetables and fruits from Antalya, Mersin and Black Sea ports to be delivered to Russia are being kept waiting in Russia’s Novoroski Port. Some 600 trucks which were on their way to deliver goods to Russia were also sent back by the Russian authorities.

[londontsi]

Re: Regional geopolitics

Russia confirms forward deployments in Syria

http://www.janes.com/article/56107/russia-confirms-forward-deployments-in-syria

A still from a televised Russian military briefing on 17 November 2015 shows a close-up of a map of the military situation around the Syrian towns of Sadad and Mahin (Mheen). It shows four Mi-24 and one Mi-8 helicopters at Al-Shayrat Air Base and the 5th unit (presumably battery) of the 120th ABR (presumably artillery brigade) located at a Syrian army base to the south. Source: Russia Today

The Russian Ministry of Defence has confirmed US claims that it has deployed helicopters and artillery deep into Syria.

The apparently unintentional confirmation came during a televised briefing on 17 November that included a close-up of a map showing the military situation around the towns of Sadad and Mahin in Homs province, where Russia is helping Syrian government forces repel an offensive by the Islamic State.

The deployments marked on the map included four Mi-24 attack helicopters and one Mi-8 utility helicopter at Al-Shayrat Air Base and a unit of the 120th Artillery Brigade deployed at a Syrian Arab Army (SAA) base just to the south with six 152 mm 2A65 Msta-B towed howitzers.

From that position, the guns could cover both the airbase and provide fire support to Syrian forces operating around Mahin, 25 km to the southeast.

Although some SAA units affiliated with the 18th Armoured Division were also marked on the map in a smaller typeface, the artillery unit is almost certainly Russian. Syria is not known to have a 120th brigade, while the Russian Army's 120st Artillery Brigade is based at Yurga and known to be equipped with Msta-B guns.

Msta-Bs were first spotted in Syria in September when Russia was building up its military presence in Syria, but it was unclear if the guns were operated by Russian personnel or had been donated to the SAA.

US officials said on 4 November that the Russian military had moved helicopters from its main base in Latakia province to Syria's Al-Shayrat, Hamah, and Tiyas airbases and said Russian artillery units are operating in the field.

The Russian map contradicted the US timeline, saying the helicopters did not arrive at Al-Shayrat until 6 November.

Airbus Defence and Space satellite imagery obtained by IHS Jane's shows just three of the 16 helicopters Russia has deployed to Syria were present at Humaymim Air Base in Latakia province on 12 November, indicating many of them had been moved to other locations.

[Haykakan]

Re: Regional geopolitics

01.12.2015 Author: Petr Lvov



What Fate Awaits Iraq Once ISIL Got Beaten in Syria


Column: Politics

Region: Middle East

Country: Iraq



4534545444While Russian war planes are obliterating the positions of ISIL and other terrorist organizations in Syria, while targeting their supply lines and oil infrastructure that allows them to smuggle oil to Turkey, the regular Syrian army, supported by the Iranian special forces units and Hezbollah squads, is slowly reclaiming the territories it was forced to concede. In this situation the only logical question one may ask is what should be done about ISIL and allied Islamist groups in Iraq, where the fighting stalled a couple of months ago?

After all, the better part of ISIL militants are already leaving Syria with their families to seek shelter in Iraq, knowing that they won’t stand a chance once France and Russia join their anti-terrorist efforts. At the same time the US is applying an increasing amount of pressure on Turkey in an attempt to force the closure of the Turkish-Syrian, which must block the escape root for militants that want to get to Europe. Turkey has been a transit point for militants all along, since they easily obtain financial support from Saudi Arabia and Qatar once they decide that they want to spread terror in Europe. Therefore, the whole “caliphate” is going to be redeployed in Iraq, occupying the western and north-western parts of the country that are largely populated by Sunni Arabs.

Lately, analysts from the US, EU, Russia and the Arab countries have been engaged in feverish calculations of all the possible scenarios of the situation Iraq, once tens of thousands of militants move there to carry out their criminal activities. All experts seem to agree on one thing: despite the urgent need to put an end to ISIL and other Islamist groups, the situation in Syria and Iraq differ drastically from each other.

The most striking difference is that the sitting legitimate government of Bahsar al-Assad, despite all the hardship, has manged to preserve the better part of state institutions, including the army, police, security services, etc. As for the regime of Saddam Hussein, it was toppled back in 2003 due to the external incursion that was led by the United States and actively supported by the United Kingdom. The ruling Ba’athist elites were replaced overnight by Iraqi collaborators of Washington only to be deposed later on by the representatives of the Shia majority. This led to a series of ethnic and religious conflicts which resulted in local Sunnis and Kurds being forced out from country’s political scene.

One should note that the US has managed to dispose of all of Saddam’s people in the government and security structures, while conniving the Shia majority that it’s “all right” to subject local Sunnis to oppression. At the same time, Washington was encouraging the Kurds of northern Iraq to undermine the authority of the central government in Baghdad. All these facts have put Iraq on on the brink of the division along ethnic and religious lines. At some point the world could easily witnessed the creation of Shiitostan, Sunnitostan, and Kurdistan that were to be connected by some form of a weak confederation.

And then there was a sudden appearance of a powerful “third force” in the face of ISIL, which managed to capture 40% of Iraqi territory in mere weeks. And here one is forced to underline what all other experts prefer to keep silent about. The phenomenon of ISIL’s strength had initially little in common with radical Islamism, in fact it was a form of consolidation of Iraqi Sunnis, whether those were officers of the former Saddam’s army or some offended Sunni tribes, that were acting behind the cover of small terrorist groups to pronounce a “caliphate”. They were forced to do it because they felt betrayed by Washington that promised them they would be represented in the government once Saddam was out of the door. This situation was further aggravated by the fact that American instructors failed to prepare an effective armed force that was destined to replace the disbanded Iraqi army. As a result, the new armed forces were fleeing the battlefield en masse when facing ISIL, leaving behind all the weapons that Washington provided them with.

One must admit that the strengthening of ISIL and the weakening of the Iraqi state was aggravated by Tehran‘s actions, which opposed any attempts to allow Sunnis to get back on the political stage in Iraq, since Iran has been trying to strengthen its influence in the country exclusively through the support it provided to the Shiites. And then, out of their stupidity and short-sightedness, Saudi Arabia and Qatar decided to provide financial assistance to the Sunni militants, in order to derail both Tehran’s and Washington’s policies.

There’s little doubt that Baghdad is not nearly as sound an ally to Moscow as Damascus is. While Russia has decades of military, trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian cooperation with Syria behind its back, Iraqi government is aiming at cooperating with Iran, since it strongly depends on its support. Iranian military presence in Iraq is a matter of paragon importance for Baghdad, just like the presence of American troops. Today there’s more than 8.5 thousand US troops being deployed in Iraq, they train Iraqi forces and protect American diplomatic missions, especially the US embassy in Baghdad. Additionally, one must bear in mind that there’s over 10 thousand American military contractors operating in Iraq, most of them are retired US military and intelligence operatives that are tasked with the protection of American assets in the country. There’s little doubt that those can be engaged in military operations, should the situation on the ground demand it. Additionally, one should remember that as soon as the tough, but charismatic former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki tried to pursue military cooperation with the Russian Federation, he was quickly replaced by a soft and obedient Haider al-Abadi.

So Russia will not be able to provide the same level of assistance to Iraq that it has been providing to Syria, since Iran, the United States and Saudi Arabia all fear that this oil-rich country will again be in the sphere of Russia’s influence, as it was the case during Saddam Hussein’s years. After all, a country that can influence Syria and Iraq, while forming a partnership with Iran, is able to single-handedly control the entire Middle East.

It’s crucial to remember that it’s way more complicated to fight ISIL in Iraq than it is in Syria. In Syria Russia is largely perceived as a friend, so regular army units welcome the close air support it provides them with. Yet, one must honestly acknowledge that many Sunnis in Iraq, especially among those who were loyal to Saddam, look at Russians as traitors since they failed to save them from the US-led invasion.

At the same time Iraqi oil reserves surpass those one can find in Syria, in fact it has similar or larger reserves than Saudi Arabia. In addition, it has been established that Iraq has substantial natural gas reserves, which will get extracted as soon as 2016. The country has a more advanced industrial potential than Syria and can become one of the most industrialized countries in the Arab world. Which means that a lot of players are going to get into the struggle for Iraq.

The Kurdish factor is playing an important role in Iraqi policies. Local Kurds were granted an autonomy back in 1992, becoming virtually independent from the central government. The years after American occupation have only strengthened this trend, allowing Kurds to expand the territories they control in the neighboring provinces. They have also stated their claim over the largest oil field in Northern Iraq. The rise of ISIL has only helped them to strengthen their positions, since they’ve been turned into resilient fighters that can beat the disorganized Iraqi army hands down. The Kurdish militia – Peshmerga, has not simply managed to stall ISIL advancement in the north of Iraq, they successfully recaptured a number of large key control points such as the city of Sinjar, and they are not going to give them back to anybody, one should have no illusions over this.

At the initial stage of Russian operation in Syria, Baghdad was pretty optimistic about it, while allowing Russia to fire cruise missiles across its territory, but then it had to be become more restrained due to the pressure the United States and Tehran were applying on it. Iraq was even thinking about asking Russia to bomb Islamists that occupy a certain part of its territory.

Apparently, there’s still a lot of people that failed to realize that Washington has been dreaming to get Russia stuck in a major military engagement in the Middle East all along. Moreover, certain Russian military figures have started arguing that, since ISIL cannot be destroyed without a ground operation in Iraq, Moscow is bound to send Russian troops, that would work together with Iranian Armed Forces and US troops. And all this against the background of the agravating Russian-Turkish face-off.

The question then is what should Moscow do when the scattered forces of ISIL are going to flee to Iraq?

The answer is simple – avoid being drawn into a large-scale ground engagement which will inevitably result in the second Afghanistan scenario. One shouldn’t ever forget the misery with which the US was leaving both Iraq and Afghanistan. Clearing up somebody else’s mess is an ungrateful job, especially if we are speaking about the mess that was produced by Washington’s policy of “democratization” of the Middle East. Of course, it makes sense to continue military cooperation with Iraq and even provide this country with military equipment, but only on a commercial basis. In the worst case scenario, Baghdad can still pay for weapons with oil or allow Russian company to develop its oil fields and be engaged in major infrastructural projects that may facilitate the economic recovery of Iraq. As for the anti-terrorist center in Baghdad, Russia can carry on sharing intelligence information in the fight against ISIL, while getting more countries to participate in this process, such countries as France.

But what’s even more important: is to provide maximum military and political assistance to the Iraqi Kurdistan. There’s no scenario under which it will remain a part of the Iraqi state. And the current Kurdish autonomy in Iraq aims to become an independent Kurdish state, which will also get the Kurdish areas in Southeast Anatolia, Turkey. An independent and strong Kurdistan – is a natural ally of Russia, which will be countering the aggressive policy of Ankara and to a certain degree restrain the excessive ambition of Tehran, which is eager to assume the role of a regional leader, while not taking into account Russia’s interests. And, strange as it may sound, Israel may also become a natural ally of Russia in this matter, which position towards the cheeky neo-Ottoman aspirations of “Sultan” Erdogan, and concerns about the Middle East ambitions of Tehran, that aims at getting nuclear weapons while assisting radical Islamist groups in Lebanon and Palestine in their struggle against Israel, is completely justified. As for the friendly Arab countries, they will understand Russia – they themselves are tired of Turkish imperial aspirations and Iranian claims for leadership in the Middle East. As for the sitting authorities in Baghdad, they have created preconditions for Kurdistan’s independence themselves, at the same time Iraqi Sunnis are more concerned with getting an autonomy of their own, than standing in the way of Kurds. In an extreme case, at this stage, one can raise the question of creating a confederate Iraqi state, since this will completely eliminate the Islamist threat.

Peter Lvov, Ph.D in political science, exclusively for the online magazine “New Eastern Outlook”.


First appeared: http://journal-neo.org/2015/12/01/wh...aten-in-syria/

[Haykakan]

Re: Regional geopolitics

Hezbollah Troops Repel Terrorists' Surprise Attack on Syria's Zabadani

News | 01.12.2015 | 09:57




FNA - Hezbollah forces prevented tens of Al-Nusra Front and Ahrar al-Sham militants from penetrating into al-Zabadani plains through a long tunnel they had dug under the city.


A sum of 100 Al-Nusra Front and Ahrar al-Sham terrorists were trying to infiltrate into al-Zabadani via the tunnels they had dug from the town of al-Mazaya, but they were pushed back.

The Hezbollah fighters received intelligence tips about the intention of the militants to enter al-Zabadani plains and launched a timely surprise attack on them.

The Takfiri terrorists were forced to retreat after sustaining heave casualties and leaving behind the bodies of their comrades killed in heavy clashes.

The Syrian army was also pounding terrorists positions on the other side of the tunnel since Sunday night. Reports said some 30 militants were killed in the Syrian army's massive artillery fire from Sunday night to Monday afternoon.

On September 2, the Syrian Army and the Lebanese Hezbollah Resistance Movement took back Syria's border town of Zabadani from the terrorists.

The border city was purged of the terrorists Wednesday midnight after two months of intense clashes, FNA dispatches said.

Hezbollah and the Syrian army gained full victory after the remaining gangs of Ahrar al-Sham and al-Nusra Front terrorists were forced to withdraw from the Southern parts of Zabadani towards al-Mazaya region.

Zabadani was freed after a ceasefire plan went into effect three times and the two sides accepted to hold fire in the border region.

Zabadani is located 50 kilometers Northwest of Damascus and 12 kilometers Northeast of Lebanon’s Masnaa border crossing.