China News, China Business News, Taiwan and Hong Kong News and Business. The ties that bind China, Russia and IranBy Jephraim P Gundzik The military implementation of the George W Bush administration's unilateralist foreign policy is creating monumental changes in the world's geostrategic alliances. The most significant of these changes is the formation of a new triangle comprised of China, Iran and Russia. Growing ties between Moscow and Beijing in the past 18 months is an important geopolitical event that has gone practically unnoticed.
China's premier, Wen Jiabao, visited Russia in September 2004. The joint military exercises complement a rapidly growing arms trade between Moscow and Beijing. In early 2005, Moscow agreed to more than double electricity exports to China, to 800 million kilowatt hours (kWh), by 2006. Russia's oil shipments to China are slated to reach 10 million tons in 2005, increasing to 15 million tons in 2006. Many analysts viewed Moscow's decision as a blow to relations with China. Beijing and Moscow warm to Tehran. China-Iran-Russia axis. The China-Iran-Russia axis has been dubbed "that other axis" by Asia Times' Jephraim P. Gundzik, who wrote June 9, 2005, that "Beijing's increasingly close ties with Moscow and Tehran will thwart Washington's foreign policy goal of expanding US security footholds in the Middle East, Central Asia and Asia. However, the primacy of economic stability will most likely prevent a proxy-style military confrontation, in Iran or North Korea, between China and the US.
" [1] "Initially, Moscow supported Washington's 'war on terrorism'. However, the US invasion of Iraq changed this support into resistance, and later into active efforts to counterbalance the US. In the past two years both Washington and Moscow have sought to strengthen their influence in Central Asia and the Caucasus. ... More significantly, Moscow is working diligently to strengthen its ties with Iran, Syria and China - countries that Washington considers to be adversaries," Gundzik wrote in March 2005. [2] Related External Resources. Obama promises 'toughest sanctions' on Iran over alleged bomb plot | World news.
Could not load plugins: File not found Obama on Iran Link to video: Obama on Iran: 'We don't take any options off the table' The United States will apply the "toughest sanctions" to further isolate Iran over the alleged plan to murder the Saudi ambassador to Washington, Barack Obama said on Thursday, despite growing scepticism over the amateurish nature of the plot and the apparently shambolic background of the main suspect.
Obama insisted that the US had evidence to back up the allegations, as he said he would not take any options off the table in dealing with Iran - diplomatic code for the possibility of military action. Tehran has vehemently denied any involvement in the plot. US authorities said on Tuesday they had evidence of a plot by two men linked to Iran's revolutionary guard to kill Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the United States, Adel al-Jubeir, by setting off a bomb in a Washington restaurant. The president's comments came as two congressional committees held hearings on Iran. Sudan and South Sudan sign border agreement - Africa. Sudan and South Sudan have signed a border security agreement, marking a step towards improving ties after tensions built up for weeks over violence in border areas and the sharing of oil revenues.
The agreement was brokered by the African Union mediation panel led by South Africa's former president Thabo Mbeki, who labelled it as "successful". Violence has flared up in two northern border states where the Sudanese army is fighting armed opposition groups. Khartoum has accused South Sudan of supporting the rebels, a charge the South denies. But in the highest-level bilateral meeting in Khartoum since South Sudan's independence in July, both sides struck a conciliatory note and vowed to improve security in the ill-defined border area where many people just walk across or smuggle goods.
Sudanese Defence Minister Abdelrahim Mohamed Hussein told reporters on Sunday that 10 crossing points would be set up within a demilitarised zone on both sides of the 2,000km long border. Oil dispute. James Zogby: A Disturbing and Dangerous Week at the U.N. This was a disturbing and dangerous week at the United Nations. After all the drama leading up to this session of the General Assembly, we come away with three troubling facts clearly established: the Palestinians, despite a valiant effort, are no closer to a state; the Israelis are more isolated, yet more emboldened than before; while the United States emerges from the week weaker and less trusted as a world leader.
It was a week of speeches and exhausting meetings and deliberations over what to do about the Palestinian bid for statehood. In a way, it was the speeches that told the story. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas delivered what must have been, literally, the speech of his life. President Abbas was followed by Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who used his remarks to both claim Jewish rights to all of Judea and Samaria, while still insisting on his interest in a negotiated peace.
The most disturbing performance of the week, however, belonged to U.S. Israel ends police cooperation with Turkey. By Agence France-PresseMonday, September 19, 2011 18:25 EDT JERUSALEM — Israel said on Monday it was withdrawing its police representative from Turkey and ending bilateral cooperation between their forces as the diplomatic crisis between the two former allies deepened. “Public Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch has ordered the transfer to Bucharest of the Israel Police representative in Ankara,” ministry spokesman Tal Volovich told AFP.
“The minister took this decision because of the deterioration in bilateral relations,” he said, adding: “There is no longer police cooperation between the two countries.” Israel and Turkey have been locked in a bitter dispute since May 2010 when Israeli naval commandos stormed a convoy of six ships trying to reach the Gaza Strip in defiance of an Israeli naval blockade, killing nine people. Earlier this month, Turkey expelled the Israeli ambassador and froze military ties and defence trade. Copyright 2011 The Raw Story Agence France-Presse. Palestine's reality - Frost Over the World. This week Sir David Frost presents the programme from New York, where the UN is convening to vote on the Palestinian bid for statehood. He discusses the regional ramifications of the vote and the Arab Spring with Qatar's prime minister. Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani, is not only prime minister, he is also the foreign minister of the tiny Gulf nation. Sheikh al-Thani speaks to Sir David about Palestine's bid for statehood; frustrations in the Middle East leading to the Arab Spring; and Qatar's role in negotiations.
He tells Sir David, in order for a solution to be reached; it is time for stronger leadership from both the Palestinians and the Israelis. He also discusses his hopes for Qatar's future; better education, health care and jobs for all in Qatar. In the second half of the programme Sir David talks to award-winning Hollywood actress Sarah Jessica Parker, who is promoting her new film I Don't Know How She Does It. As sparks fly, Pakistan warns US: 'You w... JPost - International. ISLAMABAD/WASHINGTON - Pakistan warned the United States it risks losing an ally if it continued to accuse Islamabad of playing a double game in the war against militancy, escalating the crisis in relations between the two countries.
Pakistan Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar was responding to comments by US Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen, who said Pakistan's top spy agency was closely tied to the Haqqani network, the most violent and effective faction among Islamic Taliban terrorists in Afghanistan. RELATED:Opinion: Triple troubleAfghanistan: 6 Taliban killed as 20-hour assault quelled It is the most serious allegation levelled by the United States against nuclear-armed and Muslim-majority Pakistan since they began an alliance in the war on terror a decade ago. "You will lose an ally," Khar told Geo TV in New York in remarks broadcast on Friday. "You cannot afford to alienate Pakistan, you cannot afford to alienate the Pakistani people. Russia ready to help Iran build N-plants.
Russia ready to help Iran build N-plants Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko says Russia will continue its nuclear cooperation with the Iranian government and is ready to assist Tehran in the construction of other nuclear power plants, Press TV reports. Speaking at a press conference with Iran's Atomic Energy Organization (IAEO) Chief Fereydoun Abbasi in the southern Iranian port city of Bushehr on Monday, Shmatko said Russia is willing to cooperate with Iran in the nuclear energy sector in the future. He stated that Russia has considerable experience in the construction of nuclear power plants, and the deliberation process for a new nuclear plant in Iran will be underway once Bushehr nuclear power plant reaches its full capacity.
Shmatko also said that the Bushehr power plant would become fully operational according to the set timetable, and maximum security measures have been taken into consideration at all stages. Palestinians: we are already recognised as a state by two-thirds of the globe | World news. Almost two-thirds of the UN's member states – representing more than 75% of the world's population – already formally recognise the Palestinian state in some form, according to analysis by the Guardian. The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, is pressing forward with plans to formally request UN membership this Friday, despite attempts at a diplomatic compromise by many western states and a US pledge to veto the membership bid. Raising Palestine to full statehood would need to pass the UN security council – where it is subject to veto – and then a vote at the general assembly, comprising all 193 UN member states.
However, the general assembly can raise Palestine's status from "permanent observer" to "non-member observer state", a largely symbolic vote, without security council approval. The Guardian analysis corroborates reports that such a vote would be extremely likely to be passed. Eurasian Project a Threat to New World Order. Eurasian Project a Threat to New World Order Elena PONOMAREVAStrategic Culture Foundation 09.10.2011 One might be tempted to regard Russian premier V. Putin’s paper “A new integration project for Eurasia: The future in the making”, which saw the light of day in Izvestia on October 3, 2011, as the presidential front-runner’s sketchily laid out program, but upon scrutiny that appears to be only one part of a wider picture. The opinion piece momentarily ignited wide-scale controversy in and outside of Russia and highlighted the ongoing clash of positions on global development… Regardless of interpretation details, the reaction of the Western media to the integration project unveiled by the Russian premier was uniformly negative and reflected with utmost clarity an a priori hostility towards Russia and any initiatives it floats.
Mao Zedong, though, used to say that facing pressure from your enemies is better than being in such a condition that they do not bother to keep you under pressure. Taliban and Nato-led forces engage in war of words on Twitter | World news. As the 20-hour assault by Taliban insurgents on Kabul's diplomatic and military enclave drew to a close on Wednesday, insurgents and coalition forces decided to prolong the battle the modern way: on Twitter. If the continued insurgency in Afghanistan represents a failure of dialogue, the spat between the Taliban and the press office of the international security assistance force (Isaf) on Wednesday proved that they are ready to exchange words directly, even if their comments offered little hope of peace being forged anytime soon. The argument began when @ISAFmedia, which generally provides dry updates in military speak of the security situation in Afghanistan, took exception to comments from a Taliban spokesman, tweeting: "Re: Taliban spox on #Kabul attack: the outcome is inevitable.
Question is how much longer will terrorist put innocent Afghans in harm's way? " @ISAFmedia was moved to respond by providing statistical backing for its case. "Really, @abalkhi? Kayani meets top generals as rift with US deepens. Home. The Global Realm | journalism from around the globe. America's Conquest of Africa: The Roles of France and Israel. By Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya and Julien Teil Introduction by Cynthia McKinney: “Operation Gladio”, Then and Now...
I will begin with the scandal of Operation Gladio that climaxed in the murder of former Italian Prime Minister, Aldo Moro, who on the day of his kidnapping, was to announce an Italian coalition government that would include the Italian Communist Party. Leader of the Christian Democratic Party at that time, Francesco Cossiga, admits in the 1992 BBC Timewatch documentary about Operation Gladio, that he chose to “sacrifice” Moro “for the good of the Republic.” Not unlike the targeted assassinations that the U.S. government engages in around the world, where someone extrajudicially makes decisions on who lives and who dies. Yes, Operation Gladio, along with Operation Northwoods and U.S. policy toward Libya, shows us that the United States is willing to create terror groups in order to justify a fight against terrorists!
Cynthia McKinney, 1 October 2011. Order from Chaos? Russia and China Block United Nations Resolution on Syria. Obama Explains Opposition to Palestinian Statehood Bid. Palestinian anger at US fuels diplomatic crisis over statehood | World news | The Observer. Palestinian women attend a demonstration calling for a Palestinian state at the Qalandia checkpoint near Ramallah. Photograph: Oliver Weiken/EPA Palestinian negotiators accused Washington of failing to offer measures that might have headed off a looming diplomatic crisis over UN recognition of a Palestinian state. A senior official said US proposals had been the "final straw" that led to the decision to go to the UN. Nabil Shaath, a member of the team headed by President Mahmoud Abbas that left for New York said he "gulped" when he saw the proposal presented by the US team of David Hale and Dennis Ross. "This was the statement supposed to persuade Abu Mazen [Abbas] not to go?
" His claim came as British officials said they were still undecided on how they would vote either at the UN Security Council later this week or in the subsequent vote in the UN's General Assembly that is widely expected to grant Palestine enhanced status at the UN. NATO air raids to continue in Libya - Africa. Leon Panetta, the US defence secretary, says NATO air raids in Libya will continue as long as there is heavy ground combat between supporters of former leader Muammar Gaddafi and fighters loyal to the country's new leaders. Speaking during a visit to Cairo, the Egyptian capital, on Tuesday, Panetta said he could not predict when the air campaign would be concluded. "As long as there is fighting that continues in Libya, I suspect that the NATO mission will continue," he told reporters.
When asked how long NATO's air campaign would last, he said, "I think fighting has to end. " The Pentagon chief said he expected to have a better sense after discussions in Brussels this week with fellow NATO defence ministers. Allied air strikes began in March and helped tipped the balance in favour of anti-government fighters who overran the capital, Tripoli, in August.
"Obviously there continues to be fighting by Sirte", Panetta said, adding, "We still don't know where Gaddafi is. Hundreds of residents flee. US to Veto Palestinian Independence Bid in UN Security Council. The U.S. Politics of Dealing With China - Real Time Economics. Panetta trying to unseat Israeli leader? Obama Tells Palestinians to Stay in Back of Bus - Steve Clemons - International. Despite death of Awlaki, U.S.-Yemen relations strained. For U.S. And Russia, Distrust Still Runs High. European parliament grants Palestinians âpartnerâ status. Palestinian statehood: plan emerges to avoid UN showdown | World news. Secret files: US officials aided Gaddafi - Features. Obama waives penalties on countries that employ child soldiers – again! - By Josh Rogin. Turkey Calls Cyprus Gas Drilling a ‘Provocation’ Politics in Myanmar: A change to believe in? The Military's Role in US Foreign Policy and Torture: Why is School of the Americas Absent from the National Dialogue?
AQ letter reveals Pak's N-tryst with China.