Sergey Lavrov’s interview with the BBC: The Douma event was staged and it did not involve any chemical weapons (Video)

Lavrov to BBC: The Douma event was staged and it did not involve any chemical weapons. The irrefutable proof is in the visiting of the place.

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Russia: UK trying to mislead international community over poisoning case

Russia: UK trying to mislead intl. community over poisoning case:

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has criticized the UK for trying to “mislead” the international community over the poisoning of a former spy in Britain, saying London has staged a “political performance” in the case.  

Lavrov on Wednesday criticized Britain for accusing Russia of involvement in the incident and described such claims as not robust.

“Without concrete facts, it is a flagrant attempt to mislead the international community, to which we will have to respond,” Lavrov said.

Last Wednesday, British authorities announced that former double agent Sergei Skripal, 66, and his 33-year-old daughter, Yulia, had been hospitalized since they had been found unconscious on a bench outside a shopping center in the city of Salisbury. They were reportedly being exposed to a nerve agent.

Read moreRussia: UK trying to mislead international community over poisoning case

FM Lavrov: US training EU armies to nuke Russia

US training EU armies to nuke Russia: Lavrov:

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has accused the United States of hurdling international nuclear disarmament efforts by training European armies to use tactical nuclear weapons against Russia.

Addressing the United Nations Conference on Disarmament on Wednesday, Lavrov said the US military had deployed strategic and non-strategic weapons across Europe and was using them in joint military exercises with other European countries, including the NATO military alliance’s non-nuclear members.

“As we all know, these nuclear missions violate the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), and non-nuclear states plan and take part in the US exercises and learn how to use the nuclear weapons,” he said.

“It should be clear to one and all that the US military thereby prepares the European countries for using tactical nuclear weapons against Russia,” Lavrov added.

Besides prohibiting proliferation of nuclear arms, the NPT bans states from transferring nuclear weapons and other nuclear explosive devices, or their control, to other countries.

Read moreFM Lavrov: US training EU armies to nuke Russia

FM Lavrov: US must immediately leave area it controls in southern Syria

US must immediately leave area it controls in southern Syria — Lavrov:

US troops must immediately shut down their zone of control in southern Syria in the area of Al-Tanf, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov suggested when asked what should be done to help the Syrian peace settlement.

Lavrov was referring to an area on Syria’s border with Jordan and Iraq, which the US declared to be under its protection last year. Among other things, it contains the Rukban refugee camp. The facility is apparently used by radical militants, including members of UN-designated terrorist group best known by its former name Al-Nusra Front, to recover and raid other parts of Syria, Lavrov said at the Valdai Club conference on the Middle East in Moscow. The US is turning a blind eye to such abuses of its protection, he added.

“Inside the Al-Tanf zone, which the Americans unilaterally declared under their protection, and inside the refugee camp jihadists are regularly reported to recover strength. On several occasions they conducted raids from there into other territory of the Syrian Arab Republic. This zone must be shut down immediately,” the Russian minister said.

Read moreFM Lavrov: US must immediately leave area it controls in southern Syria

FM Lavrov: ‘Wicked practice’: EU pushes Balkans to choose either West or Russia

‘Wicked practice’: EU pushes Balkans to choose either West or Russia, says Lavrov:

EU’s demands for the Balkan states to choose between the West or Russia are counterproductive and only increase tensions on the European continent, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told Serbia’s Beta news agency.

Ukraine was presented with same dilemma, Lavrov said, which “eventually led to a fracture in the Ukrainian society and state; caused an unconstitutional coup (in 2014) and the rise of radicals, including Neo-Nazis, in the internal political affairs of the country.”

“Now they want to drag the Balkans into this same game, making them choose whether they are with the West or with Russia,” he warned.

Read moreFM Lavrov: ‘Wicked practice’: EU pushes Balkans to choose either West or Russia

US-led coalition strike against Syrian pro-govt forces ‘unlawful’ – Russia

US-led coalition strike against Syrian pro-govt forces ‘unlawful’ – Russia:

The US-led coalition strike on a pro-government convoy in Syria is illegitimate and represents yet another violation of Syria’s sovereignty, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.

“The American command explained the strike on pro-government Syrian forces, saying that these forces represented a threat to opposition which cooperates with the US-led coalition,” Lavrov said on Friday. “Whatever the reason for the US command to make this decision, this strike is illegitimate and unlawful. It’s yet another harsh violation of Syria’s sovereignty.”

Read moreUS-led coalition strike against Syrian pro-govt forces ‘unlawful’ – Russia

Russia’s Foreign Minister Trolls The U.S. In Cyprus

Russia’s Foreign Minister Trolls The U.S. In Cyprus:

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov arrived in the Republic of Cyprus on Thursday for a working visit, which will last until May 20. There Lavrov is expected to hold talks with Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades and Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulidis. On the sidelines of the session, Lavrov met with Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjorn Jagland.

At that point Lavrov took another pot shot at the US, a continuation of the trolling which started yesterday when Putin offered to provide US Congress with the transcript of the Lavrov-Trump meeting, which earlier this week led to media turmoil after the WaPo reported that Trump disclosed confidential information to the Russian foreign minister.

This was the exchange in question, which the Russian ministry of foreign affairs was all to eager to tweet earlier today.

Thorbjorn Jagland: These pictures (protocol photoshoot) won’t cause any problems for you?

Sergey Lavrov: It depends on what kind of secrets you pass on to me

[Laughter in the room]

Read moreRussia’s Foreign Minister Trolls The U.S. In Cyprus

Putin Ready To Give Congress Transcript Of Trump-Lavrov Conversation To Prove No Secrets Were Revealed

Putin Ready To Give Congress Transcript Of Trump-Lavrov Conversation To Prove No Secrets Were Revealed:

As the quest to unearth just what Trump told Russian foreign minister Lavrov continued, an unexpected development emerged on Wednesday morning, when none other than Russian president Vladimir Putin said that Trump did not share any classified information or state secrets to foreign minister Sergey Lavrov, and to prove it he was ready to hand over a transcript of the talks between Putin and Lavrov to Congress if the White House requests it.

Speaking at a news conference alongside Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni, Reuters reported that Putin quipped that Lavrov had not passed what he said were the non-existent secrets onto him either. Putin said Russia was ready to hand a transcript of Trump’s meeting with Lavrov over to U.S. lawmakers if that would help reassure them.

“If the US administration deems it possible, we are ready to provide the Senate and Congress with the transcript of the conversation between Lavrov and Trump,” Putin said at a press conference, following a meeting with the Italian prime minister on Wednesday.

Read morePutin Ready To Give Congress Transcript Of Trump-Lavrov Conversation To Prove No Secrets Were Revealed

Russia Slams “Absurd” Trump Demands, Warns Tillerson “Don’t Strike Syria Again”

Russia Slams “Absurd” Trump Demands, Warns Tillerson “Don’t Strike Syria Again”:

Amid attempts to “clarify areas of sharp difference,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov blasted the Trump administration’s “ambiguous and contradictory” foreign policy at the start of talks with Tillerson in Moscow Wednesday calling the demand for the Kremlin to abandon Assad “absurd.” Furthermore, he warned Tillerson that Russia “believes it’s fundamentally important not to let these actions happen again.”

Russia pushed back against demands that it abandon Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad over a chemical-weapons attack as Bloomberg reports that the Kremlin said President Vladimir Putin is likely to meet with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

Read moreRussia Slams “Absurd” Trump Demands, Warns Tillerson “Don’t Strike Syria Again”

The Suspense Is Over: Putin Meets With Rex Tillerson At The Kremlin

The Suspense Is Over: Putin Meets With Rex Tillerson At The Kremlin:

Despite numerous earlier reports that Russian President Vladimir Putin would not meet U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, moments ago the “breathless speculation” and suspense whether the Russian president would indeed skip the opportunity to meet with the top US diplomat – who has been repeatedly portrayed in the press as a friend of the Russian president – ended when Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Putin is currently meeting with Tillerson, together with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in the Kremlin.

The surprise meeting comes one day after Kremlin officials said the top American diplomat would not meet with the Russian leader during his first official trip to Moscow.

Read moreThe Suspense Is Over: Putin Meets With Rex Tillerson At The Kremlin

Speech of FM Lavrov at the Military Academy of the General Staff (Video)

Speech of Lavrov at the Military Academy of the General Staff:

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s remarks and answers to questions during a lecture for senior officers of the Military Academy of the General Staff, Moscow, March 23, 2017

23 March 201714:21

http://www.mid.ru/en/foreign_policy/news/-/asset_publisher/cKNonkJE02Bw/content/id/2702537

For English subtitles click the ‘cc’ button on the bottom right.

Mr Kuralenko,

Comrade officers, colleagues, friends,

I am grateful for the invitation to speak at the Military Academy as part of the Army and Society series of lectures. The organisers are doing a great job supporting the tradition of unity of the people and the army, as it should be and has always been in the best years of Russia’s history. Today, we will focus on Russia’s role in international politics. This theme has always been of interest to our citizens, patriots, and all the more so to servicemen protecting our state.

How is the role of state determined in international politics? Just like in other social disciplines, there are specific fundamental values ??and criteria in international relations for making judgments on that.

Read moreSpeech of FM Lavrov at the Military Academy of the General Staff (Video)

Lavrov: US will have to negotiate with Russia, can’t act alone on global issues

Lavrov: US will have to negotiate with Russia, can’t act alone on global issues:

The US will have to negotiate with Russia on finding solutions to international issues as no state is now able to act alone, the Russian foreign minister said, adding that problems in bilateral relations began to mount long before the Ukrainian crisis broke out in 2014.

The international community should not play by Washington’s rules despite the US being a great power, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Wednesday, referring to a recent statement by President Vladimir Putin.

“Two or three months ago US President Barack Obama said it is they who set the rules,” Lavrov said, following a meeting with his Greek counterpart, Nikos Kotzias.

Read moreLavrov: US will have to negotiate with Russia, can’t act alone on global issues

Sergei Lavrov Accuses UK Government Of Pressuring RBS To Block RT Bank Accounts

Sergei Lavrov Accuses UK Government Of Pressuring RBS To Block RT Bank Accounts:

“It’s as clear as day that this decision was not made by the bank. And not any other bank – banks don’t make such decisions on their own,” Sergei Lavrov said. “I believe an old saying is appropriate here: don’t treat others the way you don’t wish to be treated yourself”

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Russian Foreign Minister Trolls US Elections: “So Many Pussies On Both Sides”

Russian Foreign Minister Trolls US Elections: “So Many Pussies On Both Sides”:

Presented with little comment…as it appears Russian Foreign Minister Segey Lavrov nails it…

Lavrov has trolled Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton during a CNN interview, telling host Christiane Amanpour that the US presidential campaign was full of “pussies”.

“There are so many pussies around your presidential campaign on both sides that I prefer not to comment,” Lavrov answered when Amanpour asked him about Trump’s “Pussy Riot moment.”

Lavrov pre-empted his answer by saying “I don’t know if I would sound indecent” before the comment left Amanpour laughing hysterically

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US Won’t Release Text Of Secret Deal With Russia To Bomb Syria

US Won’t Release Text Of Secret Deal With Russia To Bomb Syria:

“At one point we’re going to be asked to support in greater detail this Russo-U.S. plan, so to do that we will need to have all the information,”

France is calling on the United States to share details of a deal it struck with Russia on Syria, saying the information—pertaining to a temporary cease-fire followed by joint airstrikes on militants—crucial to ensure extremists and not mainstream rebels are targeted. However, Washington refuses, with a State Department spokesperson saying there are “legitimate concerns” that releasing the details could derail a plan.

Read moreUS Won’t Release Text Of Secret Deal With Russia To Bomb Syria

Russia to give strongest air support to Syrian army in Aleppo area – Lavrov

Russia to give strongest air support to Syrian army in Aleppo area – Lavrov:

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says Russia will provide “the most active” air support for Syrian ground troops in and around the city of Aleppo to prevent terrorists from seizing it.

“We will decide on how our air forces should act, depending on the situation,” Lavrov said in a media conference following talks with his Finnish counterpart. “This will not be a surprise for the Americans.”

Al-Nusra Front, an al Qaeda offshoot in Syria, went on an offensive in Aleppo last week. The Russian military blamed the US for stalling Russian airstrikes against the terrorist group’s forces in the region. The US said moderate rebel groups mingled with the terrorists in some areas and that Russia should use caution and not strike those groups by mistake.

Read moreRussia to give strongest air support to Syrian army in Aleppo area – Lavrov

John Kerry Makes Last Ditch Effort To Avert World War III As Saudis, Turks Prepare For Syria Invasion

PutinAssad_0Four Russian Fighter Jets to Escort President Assad

John Kerry Makes Last Ditch Effort To Avert World War III As Saudis, Turks Prepare For Syria Invasion:

Tomorrow, John Kerry will meet Sergei Lavrov and several of his other counterparts from Europe and the Mid-East in Munich in a last ditch effort to revive Syrian peace talks, which fell apart amid an intense Russian air assault on rebel positions in Aleppo.

For all intents and purposes, the rebels are surrounded. Initially, it appeared that the “moderate” opposition might be able to persist and bog down the Russians and the Iranians with the help of supplies from the US, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia. Those hopes faded over the past two weeks when Hezbollah advanced on Aleppo and ultimately encircled the city, cutting the rebels off from key supply lines and triggering a mass civilian exodus.

Read moreJohn Kerry Makes Last Ditch Effort To Avert World War III As Saudis, Turks Prepare For Syria Invasion

“Be Our Guest”: Russia Warns Washington Of “Unintended Incidents” In Syria

Vladimir-Putin1

Related info:

Iran Sends Soldiers To Support Russian Troops In Syria, … Combating ISIS, Al-Nusra, And Other US-Israel-Supported Groups


“Be Our Guest”: Russia Warns Washington Of “Unintended Incidents” In Syria (ZeroHedge, Sep 11, 2015):

On Thursday evening, we chronicled the latest in the drama that is Syria’s horrific civil war, noting that, according to an Israeli defense source, “hundreds” of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards are on the ground in Syria fighting alongside the Russians to support Bashar al-Assad’s depleted forces as they battle to regain control of the country.

If true, that would answer the following question which we’ve been asking for quite some time: will Iran remain on the sidelines and allow the Houthis to be routed in Yemen and Assad deposed in Syria, or will Tehran, like Moscow, finally decide that the time for rhetoric has come to an end?

Read more“Be Our Guest”: Russia Warns Washington Of “Unintended Incidents” In Syria

“F$$king Morons”: Russia’s Lavrov Drops F-Bomb At Saudi-Syria Press Conference (Video)

“F$$king Morons”: Russia’s Lavrov Drops F-Bomb At Saudi-Syria Press Conference (ZeroHedge, Aug 13, 2015):

Earlier this week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met with his Saudi counterpart Adel al-Jubeir to discuss options for Syria’s future. Here’s the context:

Realizing that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s badly depleted forces are likely to face defeat sooner or later, either at the hands of the various militants “freedom fighters” vying for control of the country or else at the hands of the US military which we imagine could “accidentally” end up engaging Assad’s forces directly once the air campaign against ISIS picks up, Moscow has gone back and forth between suggesting that it’s willing to negotiate for an “alternative” to Assad and saying that Russia is willing to lend military support to Damascus if it means helping to eradicate “terrorists.” Again we see that both sides are prepared to use ISIS as an excuse to turn what has so far been a thinly-veiled proxy war into an actual confrontation between East and West and although Russia may be willing to “go there” if all options are exhausted, the economic realities of collapsing crude and Western sanctions are all too real which is presumably why the Kremlin entertained Saudi foreign minister Adel al-Jubeir in Moscow on Tuesday to discuss next steps for Syria. In the end, it all came down to the fate of Assad and both sides are apparently willing to stand their ground – for now. 

In short, the Saudis see “no place for Assad in the future of Syria” while Russia isn’t quite ready to throw in the towel on the embattled strongman. After the meeting, the two diplomats held a joint press conference.

For those interested in more detail on the “friggin’ mess” that served as the backdrop for Tuesday’s presser, see here, but the clip shown below – in which Lavrov calls the Saudis “fucking morons” under his breath at 41:05 in – should suffice as the Cliff’s Notes version.

Lavrov Reminds US: European Missile Defense Needless as Iran Deal Reached

Patriot air and missile defence system at a test range in Sochaczew, Poland, on March 21, 2015

Lavrov Reminds US: European Missile Defense Needless as Iran Deal Reached (Sputnik, July 14, 2015):

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov reminded that US President Barack Obama said in April 2009 in Prague that if the Iran’s nuclear issue was solved, there would be no need to create an air defense system in Europe.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Russia is expecting a reaction from the United States on comments that the agreement with Iran should resolve concerns about the European missile defense system, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Tuesday.

Read moreLavrov Reminds US: European Missile Defense Needless as Iran Deal Reached

Global News Update: Dec 02, 2014

Politicians at work:

your politicians at work
Source: Grant Williams @TTMYGH (Click on image to enlarge.)

With Its Gold “Vaporized”, A Furious Ukraine Turns On Its Central Bankers (ZeroHedge):

As reported two weeks ago, following to a stunning announcement by the head of Ukraine’s central bank, Valeriya Gontareva, we learned that (virtually) all of Ukraine’s gold was gone, or – in the parlance of Jon Corzine – had “vaporized.” And as we also predicted two weeks ago, it was only a matter of time before Ukraine’s people – the vast majority of whom are innocent pawns in a vast game of realpolitik between the west and east – finally got angry and demanded some answers. That time came earlier today when as Interfax.ua reported “a Kyiv-based court has instructed Kyiv prosecutors to bring an action against National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) Governor Valeriya Gontareva on charges of abuse of power or misuse of office to obtain illegal profit, the Vesti newspaper reported on Tuesday.”

 …

Putin-Obama

Tensions Between the U.S. and Russia Are Worse Than You Realize – Remarks by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (Liberty Blitzkrieg):

Many reasonable analysts understand that there is a widening gap between the global ambitions of the US Administration and the country’s real potential. The world is changing and, as has always happened in history, at some point somebody’s influence and power reach their peak and then somebody begins to develop still faster and more effectively. One should study history and proceed from realities. The seven developing economies headed by BRICS already have a bigger GDP than the Western G7. One should proceed from the facts of life, and not from a misconceived sense of one’s own grandeur.

‘Worst Case Scenario’ has happened at US nuclear site — Robert Redford film predicted 2014 WIPP disaster: Plutonium release due to chemical reaction in burst nuclear drum is ultimate catastrophe… Most significant issue is combustible waste exposed to high heat, everyone understands that (VIDEO) (ENENews):

The WIPP Trail, narrated by Robert Redford, 1989 (at 17:00 in):

  • Robert Redford: We now know that 40% of the [WIPP] hazardous waste is combustible, thus posing a more serious and immediate threat.
  • Bruce Throne, New Mexico State Attorney: I think the combustible waste is perhaps the most significant because even a layman can understand that when combustible waste is exposed to high levels of heat, there may be some effect inside the TRUPAC [containers].
  • Redford: Wind is a critical factor that must be considered. The worst case scenario would be if a fire occurs within a breach of a container. The wind could then carry plutonium particles through the atmosphere, traveling considerable distances.
  • Oxford Dictionary’s definition of fire: “Combustion or burning, in which substances combine chemically with oxygen from the air and typically give out bright light, heat, and smoke”

French parliament votes to recognize Palestinian state (RT):

France’s Socialist-led parliament has passed a symbolic vote to recognize Palestinian statehood, despite staunch objections from Israel. MPs in Britain and Spain have already passed similar motions.

The Abenomics Devastation: Japanese Real Wages Decline For Record 16 Consecutive Months (ZeroHedge):

Those seeking proof that Abenomics is working are advised to look elsewhere.

Retail-Apocalypse

The Retail Apocalypse Accelerates: Collapsing Holiday Sales Are A Signal That A Recession Is Coming (Economic Collapse):

Retail sales during the four day Thanksgiving weekend were down a whopping 11 percent from last year.  This is a “make or break” time of the year for many retailers, and if things don’t turn around during the coming weeks we could see a tsunami of store closings in January and February.  As you read this article, there is already more than a billion square feet of retail space sitting empty in the United States.  Many have described the ongoing collapse of the retail industry as an “apocalypse”, and this apocalypse appears to be accelerating.  Yes, the shift to online retailers is a significant factor, but as you will see below even online retailers struggled over the holiday weekend.  The sad truth of the matter is that U.S. consumers are tapped out and are drowning in debt at this point, so they simply do not have as much money to spend as they once did.

The coming nuclear crisis: All but one of Britain’s ageing reactors ‘will need to close in 15 years’ (Independent):

All but one of Britain’s ageing fleet of nuclear reactors will have to be closed down within 15 years due to concerns over their economic viability or safety, a panel of experts has warned.

Only Sizewell B power station will still be operating beyond 2030, which would leave a shortfall of about 20 per cent in the UK’s power demands unless replacement nuclear reactors come on-stream in the 2020s, they said.

Britain’s existing nuclear reactors apart from Sizewell B are operating beyond their original lifetime specifications, but they are still working as safely as they were designed to be, said Professor Laurence Williams, a former chief inspector of nuclear installations.

Sure!

oil-china

And The Biggest Winner From The OPEC Price War Is… (ZeroHedge):

“This is a golden time window to acquire more strategic oil at lower costs,” notes one Hong-Kong based analyst, as Bloomberg confirms what we have noted here and here, that China is emerging as the winner from OPEC’s battle with rival oil producers as the world’s biggest energy consumer stockpiles crude.

ISIS claims to have developed dirty bomb – reports (RT):

So-called Islamic State militants claim to have developed a crude nuclear weapon using materials seized from Mosul University, Iraq. A British extremist boasted of the damage the dirty bomb would do if detonated in Iraq, UK media reports.

One of the militants bragging about the device online was Hamayun Tariq, fighting under the nom de guerre of Muslim-al-Britani, the Daily Mirror reports. Britani, a Briton who claims to be a bomb expert, tweeted:

“O by the way, Islamic State does have a dirty bomb. We found some radioactive material from Mosul University.”

isis-dirty-bomb

Lebanese Army detains wife, son of ISIS leader (RT):

A wife and a son of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi have been arrested by the Lebanese Army, Beirut security officials said. They were detained in coordination with “foreign intelligence apparatus,” reported the local press.

The woman was described by officials as one of al-Baghdadi’s wives, Safir daily newspaper reported. However, they didn’t provide any details on her nationality or name.

The woman, who was accompanied by her son, was arrested while crossing the border from Syria. According to the officials, she was using a fake ID.

SURE!!!

mossadISISmeme

ISIS-leader-Al-Baghdadi-Mccain

2014 Is Now The Worst Year For US Macro Data Performance Since 2008 (ZeroHedge):

Once again the cyclical patterns in US macro data are re-emerging as extrapolated hopes fade into mean-reverting credit-impulse-hangover-driven realities. Despite all the hopes and dreams of escape velocity, cleanest-dirty-shirt-wearing economic enthusiasts, year-to-date performance of Citi’s US Macro Surprise index is at its lowest level since 2008. Whether this is absolute weakness or relative weakness (versus yet more over-enthusiastic expectations) is unclear though, the Midterm election results and NFR Black Friday spending data may be a hint.

Putin Kills “South Stream” Pipeline, Will Build New Massive Pipeline To Turkey Instead (ZeroHedge):

Earlier today, in a stunning announcement, Putin revealed that the South Stream project is now finished. As the WSJ reports, “Putin said Moscow will stop pursuing Gazprom’s South Stream pipeline project that would supply natural gas to Europe with an underwater link to Bulgaria, blaming the European Union for scuttling the project.” Putin is right: Europe – Austria excluded – had seen rising resistance to the South Stream in recent months. The EU is concerned that the project would cement Russia’s position as Europe’s dominant supplier of natural gas. Russia already meets around 30% of Europe’s annual needs. So what does Putin do? He signs a strategic alliance with NATO member Turkey, the only country in Europe that is anything but European and which lately has been increasingly anti-Western, to build a new mega-pipeline to Turkey instead. And the exclamation point:

TURKEY, RUSSIA AGREE TO USE LOCAL CURRENCIES IN TRADE: TRT

Or, as Obama would put it, Russia just got even more “isolated.”

Haunting Drone Footage of Chernobyl Town (Smithonian):

“Postcards from Pripyat, Chernobyl” shows a drone’s-eye view of the city nearly three decades after nuclear disaster

The World’s Largest Stock Market Index Is Flashing Red (ZeroHedge):

With a market capitalization of around $16 trillion, the NYSE Composite Index is a massively broad equity indicator less affected by the day to day gyrations of AAPL, TSLA, BABA, or NFLX. As NewEdge’s Brad Wishak remarks, the world’s largest market cap equity index is painting a very different picture than that of the Dow or S&P 500

WTF: Canada family keeps father’s corpse for 6 months, praying for resurrection (RT):

A small community of Christians in Canada left the body of a deceased member for six months trusting God to resurrect him from the dead. The Crown found no criminal intent and the grieving widow was ordered to seek public health counseling.

Escape From Detroit

Images From A Dark Detroit: “Major Cable Failure” Sparks Widespread Power Outage (ZeroHedge):

Just 15 months after Detroit’s Black Out 2013 debacle, spokespeople for the city and DTE Energy confirmed at around 11:00 a.m. local time on Tuesday that most of Detroit’s municipal grid is offline:

*DETROIT CITES ‘MAJOR CABLE FAILURE’ FOR POWER OUTAGE
*DETROIT: OUTAGE IS AFFECTING ALL CUSTOMERS ON THE PLD GRID

The outage is preventing power from being delivered to police stations, schools, traffic lights and other city-run facilities and services.

muppets-kermit-dead

It’s Muppet-Slaughtering Time – Goldman Unveils 2015 Global Equity Themes (ZeroHedge):

Goldman Sachs’ 2015 global equity views and themes note is out and its title “The Long Grind Higher Continues” says it all… it’s muppet slaughtering time…

Mexicans march against president as fresh graves discovered (PHOTO, VIDEO) (RT)

Ex EU President Van Rompuy “Hit The Jackpot”, Paid Almost $1Million “For Doing Nothing”  (ZeroHedge):

It’s good to be king (or Europe). Former European Council President Herman van Rompuy, derided for “damp rag” ineptness by UKIP’s Nigel Farage, will receive around $900,000 over the next 3 years as a “transition allowance” for doing absolutely nothing in retirement. What is even more egregious, as The Telegraph reports, Van Rompuy will pay a reduced “EU Community” tax rate, considerably lower than the Belgian income tax rate on his ill-gotten gains. As Farage exclaims, having driven millions of Europeans into poverty and unemployment during his reign, Van Rompuy “hit the jackpot.”

?9yo Australian girl forced into MidEast wedding – report (RT)

Almost 9000 Daily record cold temps in November alone (Ice Age Now):

8977 Record Cold temps in November vs 2022 Record Warm Temps

Intense cold continues across central U.S. (Ice Age Now):

Temperatures as much as 25 degrees or more below normal will be common across much of the central U.S. on Monday, from Texas to the Canadian border.

Michigan ski area opens with record snow (Ice Age Now):

WAKEFIELD — Indianhead Mountain opened to skiing on Friday after record snowfall has fallen this year.

Significant winter storm unfolding in eastern Europe (Ice Age Now):

Romania to be hardest hit


Parts of southern and eastern Romania will face severe disruptions to travel and daily routines, while bordering areas of Bulgaria, Moldova and Ukraine will have some impacts from a significant winter storm, says meteorologist Eric Leister.

The cities of Craiova, Bucharest and Bacau are in the area that will be hardest hit.

Eastern Turkey – Heavy snowfall reduces visibility to 16 feet (5 m) (Ice Age Now):

1 Dec 2014  – Due to heavy snowfall, the city of Bitlis soon took on white blanket.

In particular, blizzard conditions in the locality Rahvan between Bitlis and Tatvan reduced visibility to 5 meters, catching many unprepared many vehicles on the road.

The Fed’s Biggest Nightmare: Consumers Are “Losing Faith” Their Cost Of Living Won’t Keep Rising (ZeroHedge):

Filed under “insane paragraph of the year,” Reuters pens one of the most-telling sentences of the year/decade/century, suggesting – as per the existential threat to the Fed’s meme – that consumers are worried that their cost of living won’t go up more?

20141201_Fed

via Reuters

Translation: Please dont lose faith that your cost of living will stop soaring: the Fed’s very existence depends on it.

Obama appoints Ashton Carter as Pentagon chief (RT):

President Barack Obama is expected to announce Ashton B. Carter as his nominee to be the next secretary of defense, the Associated Press reports. Carter served as the Pentagon’s second-in-command from October 2011 to December 2013.

Global News Update: Nov 20, 2014

Obama-Putin

Meanwhile, This Is What Is Really Taking Place Behind The Second US-Russian Cold War:

It appears John Kerry is at it again. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says the US Secretary of State called on him to “pay no mind” to a statement by President Obama, in which Russia was included to a list of top global threats. Seeking Russia’s cooperation in Iran and on the Korean Peninsula, Kerry told Lavrov to “forget about” what Obama said. As US foreign policy credibility dissolves, we leave it to Lavrov to conclude, “it is flippant,” he jabs, “it’s not appropriate for a powerful country to have such a consumer attitude to its partners – where you’re needed, help us; where you’re not, obey us.

The dust has barely settled on the latest high profile banker suicide in which Deutsche Bank’s associate general counsel, and former SEC regulator, Charlie Gambino was found dead, having hung himself by the neck from a stairway banister, and here comes the latest sad entrant in the dead banker chronicles of 2014 when earlier today, the Post reports, a Citigroup banker was found dead with his throat slashed in the bathtub “of his swanky downtown apartment, authorities said Wednesday.”

However, unlike previous more “clearcut” suicides, this time there may have been foul play: the Post adds that “there was no knife recovered at the scene, leading officials to suspect the death was not a suicide, and they were trying to determine who had access to his apartment.”

21 Facts That Prove That Dependence On The Government Is Out Of Control In America:

1. According to a Congressional Budget Office study that was just released, approximately 60 percent of all U.S. households get more in transfer payments from the government than they pay in taxes. 

Stunning Photos Of Record Snow Covering Upstate New York: 100 Total Inches Of Snow Expected:

As previously reported, the anticipated Polar Vortex 2.0 has struck, pushing temperatures in all 50 states to below freezing, while heavy snow prompted a state of emergency in western New York and contributed to the deaths of four people. According to Reuters, it was the coldest November morning across the country since 1976, according to Weather Bell Analytics, a meteorologist consulting firm. It remains to be seen how many GDP percentage points were wiped out as a result, unless of course, this time it will be different from last winter. But it was the situation in upstate New York, especially around Bufallo and parts of Erie County, where things got most dire and where 60 inches (1.5 m) of snow accumulated, with more falling, said Steven Welch of the National Weather Service near Buffalo. It gets worse: forecasters are calling for more snow on Thursday, as much as three feet more, for a total of up to 100 inches over four days – a year’s worth for the region!

More than a year’s snowfall in three days:

“This will be a historic event… absolutely. It is a historic event,” said Dave Zaff of the National Weather Service in Buffalo. “A stunning amount of snow.”

Climate can change drastically in mere decades – With no help from humans:

“The results show that the climate over the past hundred thousand years has been a roller coaster. Within just a few decades, the climate could tip from an ice age into a warm period,” says Doctor Thomas Litt of the University of Bonn’s Steinmann Institute and spokesman for the PALEOVAN international consortium of researchers.

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America Throws Up Over Obama’s Immigration Executive Action Even Before It Is Announced:

Ahead of President Obama’s address to the nation tomorrow to dictate his executive orders on immigration, potentially allowing millions of undocumented immigrants to stay legally in the US, a new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll finds nearly half of Americans disapprove of his plan. Only a dismal 38% support the President taking this executive action… which makes us wonder if there has ever been so much revulsion at the policies of a standing President. It’s good to be king.

President Obama To Dictate Immigration Executive Order In Vegas On Friday:

While what normally happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas; President Obama’s decision to dictate his Immigration Executive Order from sin city will likely have repurcussions across the entire nation. As NY Times reports, Obama is preparing to use his executive authority to provide work permits for up to five million people who are in the US illegally, and to shield them from deportation. But these new arrivals will not receive one key benefit: government subsidies for health care available under Obamacare. The immigrants would also be unlikely to receive benefits like food stamps, Medicaid coverage or other need-based federal programs offered to citizens and to some legal residents. “The costs of extending these programs to millions of low-wage illegal immigrants would be enormous,” said Senator Jeff Sessions “this is yet another danger posed to Americans by the president’s unconstitutional action.”

Bill to have all Russians fingerprinted and DNA profiled submitted to parliament:

MPs from the populist nationalist party LDPR have prepared and drafted a motion requiring universal fingerprinting and DNA profiling of all Russian citizens for reasons of security.

Ebola cure: WATER! Drinking a gallon of fluid daily recognized as key to survival:

One of the primary lessons being learned from the Ebola crisis is that fancy meds and vaccines aren’t needed to cure the disease. Simple water, it turns out, is one of the best treatments for the hemorrhagic illness, supplying the body with much-needed hydration that is quickly lost when the advanced stages of nausea and vomiting begin to develop.

(Recommended is steam-distilled water (See HERE & HERE.)

Prescription drug vending machines now being installed on college campuses across America:

The total insanity of over-medication in America has reached a new low as Arizona State University has installed a prescription drug vending machine called InstyMeds.

With growth rates for steel products at or near record lows and prices for end-product having plunged to record lows, it is little surprise that the Steel industry would provide the largest Chinese bankruptcy yet in this cycle. As Bloomberg reports, unlisted Haixin Iron & Steel – which halted production and defaulted on CNY3 bn in March – has started bankruptcy proceedings. Having spent 8 months hoping for the government bailout that every Western onlooker believes is every firm’s god-given right, a reorganization application for the Wenxi, Shanxi province-based company (with $1.7 billion of total debt) was accepted by the Yuncheng City Intermediate People’s Court. This is just the start as “Haixin Group’s bankruptcy will be followed by others,” warns one analyst, adding that the major flaw of producers of iron ore, the most traded commodity after oil, is they tend to be “over-bullish.”

Just a week after Dr. Craig Spencer was declared ‘Ebola-free’, The Daily Mail reports a woman, who had arrived from Guinea 18 days ago (and was on the NYC Ebola monitoring list), dropped dead in a Brooklyn hair salon this afternoon. FDNY sent their Special Operations and Hazmat units but she was declared dead at the scene. Witnesses said she was bleeding from the “face, nose, mouth, everything.”

Navy vet to RT: I was fired, called ‘terrorist’ for posting photos of DHS vehicles near Ferguson:

Mark Paffrath, a Navy veteran, was fired and branded a “terrorist” for taking pictures of dozens of Homeland Security vehicles parked at the hotel where he used to work in Ferguson, as grand jury decision on Michael Brown shooting is due, he told RT.

This is the ‘Greatest Depression’ …

3 Of The 10 Largest Economies In The World Have Already Fallen Into Recession – Is The U.S. Next?

… and it will get much worse. Prepare for collapse.

Half of UK councils face financial collapse – report:

Half the UK’s local councils are at risk of collapse, the government’s official auditor has said, warning that one in six may be unable to provide basic services this year. The warning comes after severe cuts in national government funding.

In a report produced by the government’s official auditor, the National Audit Office (NAO) on Wednesday, 52 percent of councils were said to be at risk of not having enough resources to fund public services, including education and social care.

Adrian Salbuchi: The Cult of ISIS:

No, we’re not talking about any ancient Egyptian religious lore, even though geographically, we’re in the same general area.

We’re talking about the latest boogeyman trump card drawn by the “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse” – US / UK / EU / Israel – bent on instilling fear, terror and panic amongst Western nations.

With tens of billions of dollars financing, with well-armed and well-trained Jihad fighters, and an eerily charismatic black-robed Darth Vader-like fearless leader – Abu-Bakr-al-Baghdadi – ISIS sprang to life armor-clad and fully armed just like the Greek war goddess Pallas Athena was born out of Zeus’ forehead.

If this sounds strange; the following is even stranger: for some “unexplained” reason Islamic State does not attack US allies in the Middle East like Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Qatar or Bahrain. Even more oddly, IS does not attack Israel whom Arabs are supposed to consider their greatest regional enemy;

So: Here we have ISIS/ISIL/IS murdering untold thousands of Iraqis, Syrians, Kurds, Christians, Shiites of all nationalities, but never touching Israel nor European and US homeland and foreign interests save for a handful of allegedly beheaded hostages.

But, wait a minute. What a coincidence! Those are pretty much the very same foes and friends of the “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse” presently waging their “Global Mega-War on Terror!”

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‘US foreign policy in ME dictated by Israel’:

A US journalist and political analyst said Israel is the supporter of al-Nusra and Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) Takfiri terrorists.

“And if Israel supports ISIS, we support ISIS, because our foreign policy in the Middle East is dictated by Israel,” Wayne Madsen told Habilian.

Regarding the US airstrikes on ISIS positions, Madsen said they are like Saudi Arabia’s bombing ISIS militants and financing them at the same time.

ISIS is an operation run by the Israeli Secret Intelligence Service and the CIA … (More info HERE.)

–  “Helpful” Britain Tweets “How To Spot A Russian Tank In Ukraine”:

In case you are wondering through Ukraine and come across a tank, the British embassy in Kiev has issued a handy pocket guide to indentifying whether it is Russian (bad guys) or Ukrainian (good guys)…

Now that was indeed very ‘helpful’

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H/t reader squodgy:

Were the parents asked if it was OK, first??

http://rt.com/usa/206311-chicago-5thgraders-sex-ed-anal/

This is so sick:

‘Use lots of lube & enter anus slowly’: Chicago schools teach anal sex to 5th graders:

Parents at an elite, magnet elementary school in Chicago were “horrified” when they saw the “obscene” sexual education materials their fifth graders would be learning. The curriculum included condom demonstrations and discussions of anal sex.

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666 … just another ‘coincidence’

Royals and Thatcher to blame for Jimmy Savile scandal, says Noel Edmonds:

The Royal Family and Margaret Thatcher were as much to blame as the BBC for failing to stop Jimmy Savile’s “unspeakable” crimes, Noel Edmonds has suggested.

The television presenter, who worked with Savile at the Corporation, said the whole establishment was implicated for allowing the paedophile DJ to flourish.

(And I know whose TV career just ended.)

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Jimmy Savile ‘raped girl, 15, in flat’:

Jimmy Savile raped a 15-year-old girl with another DJ who told her “you should be thanking us”, a court has heard.

Operation Midlandinvestigates Tory MP over boy’s murder:

Operation Midland

Germany and Bulgaria Confirm Strong Opposition to GM Crops:

Germany’s Farm Minister Christian Schmidt and Bulgaria’s Foreign Minister Daniel Mitov both confirmed their countries’ strong opposition to GM crops on Friday.

57 Million Americans Warn UK over Dangers of GM Food and Farming:

In an open letter published in The Times newspaper and promoted through a digital billboard at Waterloo station, American celebrities, Susan Sarandon, Daryl Hannah and Robert Kennedy Jr joined US NGOs, trade groups and businesses such as Food & Water Watch, the Sierra Club, the Rachel Carson Council, Friends of the Earth, the Organic Consumers Association, Dr Bronner’s and NYR Organic to warn British citizens of the dangers of growing GM crops and urge them to speak out before it’s too late.

The fully referenced letter, signed by groups and individuals representing some 57 million members and supporters, argues that GM crops have never delivered on their promises to increase yields and profits or to decrease pesticide use. In fact, they have done the opposite with the cost of growing GM crops now greater than conventional crops in the US and pesticide use 24% higher amongst GM farmers than non-GM farmers planting the same crops.

Global GMO Free Coalition Set to Help Fund World’s Largest GMO Safety Study:

The Global GMO Free Coalition welcomes the launch of the largest ever study on GMO and pesticide safety – Factor GMO. This is the type of study that should have been carried out on all GM foods before they were released into our food and feed supplies.

–  What Do College Undergrads Spend Their Student Loans On: High-School Classes:

While the impact of the student loan bubble on the labor participation rate has been extensively covered in the past, there is a just as important question of just what these “students” spend their money on. Among the items revealed: “A U.S. Middle District Court indictment alleges that Price spent much of the loan money on crack cocaine, cars, motorcycles, jewelry, tattoos and video games.” And iPhones of course, because someone has to indirectly provide US subsidies to the NSA’s favorite company. Now we know one more thing that America’s young adults, of whom some 24% expect that their debt will ultimately be forgiven, are blowing Uncle Sam’s debt on. The answer: high-school level classes.

 …

 – Homebuilder Hope Hammered As Housing Starts Tumble:

With surging homebuilder sentiment, we suspect the disappointing plunge in Housing Starts (-2.8% vs +0.8% exp) will surprise a few but there is hope… as Building Permits rose 4.8% (vs 0.9% expectations) on the back of an 8% surge in multi-family / rental units. This is the highest level fo Permits since June 2008 (but still over 50% below peak permits levels in 2005). The only region with any increase in starts was the South.

–  One Reader’s Shocked Response Upon Learning His Health Insurance Cost Just Doubled:

“Attached is the ACA notification of next year’s price increase.  As you can see the cost goes from $281 to $555, a monthly increase of $274, a percentage increase of 97%. Basically we are now paying the same amount for the two of us that we paid for all four of us one year ago.  How can that increase occur in a “free market” economy?  Did I miss something? Has some input cost leaped exponentially in order to double the price I pay? Or has private industry colluded with government to rig the markets (again) in their favor?”

Drone operators had bin Laden in crosshairs a year before 9/11:

?The first American to ever launch a drone strike from an armed unmanned aerial vehicle now says he had Osama bin Laden in his crosshairs in 2000, a full year before the terrorist attacks of September 11.

Flashback: President Bush Rejects Taliban Offer To Surrender Osama Bin Laden

Confronting Riot Cops in Tampa: