Monday, March 10, 2014
'We Cannot Let Putin Get Away with This,' Says Polish Minister
 |
| Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski |
“We cannot let Putin get away with this,” says Radek Sikorski, Poland’s Foreign Minister. His Oxford English is perfect, his tone decisive. “By annexing Crimea, Russia is forcing a major change of boundaries on Europe. It means the breaking of the post-Cold War consensus. That is verboten.”
Vladimir Putin, lacking Mr Sikorski’s linguistic skills, does not understand “verboten”. He has been taunting the west for days now, placing troops on Ukrainian soil to defend -- as he puts it -- ethnic Russians there from the “nationalist mob” who overthrew President Viktor Yanukovych. The annexation of Crimea, the southernmost region in Ukraine, looks inevitable to Sikorski: “The timetable for the Kremlin’s annexation of the region is accelerating daily.” Putin knows America and the EU are in thrall to Russia’s money, oil and gas. He reckons that with huge economic interests at stake, no one will fight for Ukraine’s sovereignity.
But Putin has underestimated EU unity, says Sikorski. “I’m seeing William Hague on Monday. We are as one on Ukraine. We cannot allow Putin to redraw the map of Europe along ethnic lines. Europe is based on the principle of overcoming borders rather than redrawing them. No one has the unilateral right to move borders in response to presumed ethnic grievances. We’ve seen what happened when a European leader tried to do that before: the peoples of the Soviet Union paid one of the biggest prices for this.” » | Cristina Odone | Monday, March 10, 2014
Chodorkowski stellt Gesuch an Schweizer Behörden
Der russische Kreml-Kritiker und ehemalige Ölunternehmer Michail Chodorkowski will sich in der Schweiz niederlassen. Chodorkowski hat ein entsprechendes Gesuch eingereicht, wie seine in Zug ansässige Kommunikationsagentur gegenüber der Nachrichtenagentur sda sagte.
Wo er das Gesuch gestellt hat, wollte die Agentur nicht sagen. Das Verfahren sei im Gang. Man werde zu gegebener Zeit informieren, hiess es weiter. Zurzeit hält sich Chodorkowski in Kiew auf. Am Sonntag rief er Russen und Ukrainer zum Einlenken im Krim-Konflikt auf. » | bru/sda/AP | Montag, 10. März 2014
Robert Gates on Ukraine Crisis, 'Reset' with Russia
Sunday, March 09, 2014
North Koreans 'Vote' in Elections - Singing, Dancing and Reciting Poetry
Sen. Mike Lee on Reigning in Obama's Expanding Power
Huckabee: We've Become the Shakiest Gun in the West
America – From Freedom To Fascism (2011)
Gambia President Rejects English Language
 |
| President Yahya Jammeh has given Gambian public sector workers a weekly extra day off |
Gambia's president said that he wants to implement a policy change that would shift the country's language from English to a local language.
"We no longer subscribe to the belief that for you to be a government you should speak English language. We should speak our language," President Yahya Jammeh said during the swearing-in ceremony of Gambia's new Chief Justice that aired on state-run Gambia Television Services on Friday.
The announcement comes months after the West African country announced it is withdrawing from the Commonwealth, a collection of 54 nations made up largely of former British colonies, saying it would "never be a member of any neo-colonial institution."
The United Kingdom recently warned its citizens of rising anti-British rhetoric from the president, who last year accused the former colonial power and the United States of organizing coup attempts in the West African nation. The allegations were denied. » | AP | Sunday, March 09, 2014
Why Does Islam Get Special Treatment in Australia? - "A Cruel Culture"
Putin More of a 'Leader' Than Obama?
Saturday, March 08, 2014
Is Obama's 'Weakness' to Blame for Russia's Aggression?
We Christians Live in Fear in Syria
 |
| The Armenian St. Kevork in Aleppo was burnt during fighting between rebel fighters and Syrian government forces |
Today, the first Sunday of Lent, will see churches crowded across the globe. But here in Syria, where St Paul found his faith, many churches stand empty, targets for bombardment and desecration. Aleppo, where I have been bishop for 25 years, is devastated. We have become accustomed to the daily dose of death and destruction, but living in such uncertainty and fear exhausts the body and the mind.
We hear the thunder of bombs and the rattle of gunfire, but we don’t always know what is happening. It’s hard to describe how chaotic, terrifying and psychologically difficult it is when you have no idea what will happen next, or where the next rocket will fall. Many Christians cope with the tension by being fatalistic: that whatever happens is God’s will.
Until the war began, Syria was one of the last remaining strongholds for Christianity in the Middle East. We have 45 churches in Aleppo. But now our faith is under mortal threat, in danger of being driven into extinction, the same pattern we have seen in neighbouring Iraq.
Most Christians who could afford to leave Aleppo have already fled for Lebanon, so as to find schools for their children. Those who remain are mostly from poor families. Many can no longer put food on the table. Last year, even amid intense fighting, you could see people in the streets running around endlessly trying to find bread in one of the shops. Read on and comment » | Antoine Audo * | Saturday, March 08, 2014
* Bishop Antoine Audo SJ is the Chaldean Bishop of Aleppo and president of Caritas Syria
My comment:
May God bless you, Bishop, for your sterling work; and may God bless the Christians of Syria.
I wish that our politicians would show the courage to do something meaningful to help you, instead of supplying arms to the rebels.
The Christians of the Middle East have been ignored for far, far too long. The de-Christianization of the ME is one of the tragedies of modern times. After all, the Middle East is the birthplace of Christianity. A ME without Christians would be a very sad ME indeed. – © Mark
This comment appears here too.
Chris Wallace Discusses Phone Call Between Obama, Putin
Too Much? German Schools Plan to Teach 'Sexual Diversity', Parents Outraged
Garry Kasparov: Putin Will Go 'As Far As He's Allowed To Go'
Muslim Censors Move to Ban 'Noah'
YNET NEWS: Hollywood blockbuster 'Noah' faces ban in Arab world: Censors in Qatar, Bahrain and the UAE banned film as Islam objects to depictions of holy figures in art. Similar bans expected in Egypt, Jordan and Kuwait. » | Reuters | Saturday, March 08, 2014
As Ukraine Crisis Escalates, Obama and Biden Go on Vacation?
Putin Attempting to Re-establish Russian Strength?
Friday, March 07, 2014
Les Russes bombardés par la propagande du régime
«La vérité est de notre côté»: c'est un cri du cœur qu'a lancé Dmitri Kissilev, le présentateur vedette de la chaîne Rossia 24, dimanche dernier, au plus fort de la crise ukrainienne. La sentence de l'homme qui passe pour l'un des chefs d'orchestre de l'appareil de propagande pro-russe, était formulée juste après la diffusion d'un sondage constatant la forte hausse de la cote de popularité de Vladimir Poutine et celui d'un commentaire hostile au pouvoir «sauvage» installé à Kiev, avec «l'aide des Américains». Quelques jours plus tôt, cette chaîne d'information continue s'était illustrée en interrompant brutalement, en direct, un député de Crimée expliquant que les tensions dans la péninsule étaient provoquées par les autorités locales.
Cette vision unilatérale du conflit russo-ukrainien est la seule accessible à l'immense majorité de la population, quotidiennement abreuvée par les chaînes de télévision publiques. Le quotidien gouvernemental Rossiskaya Gazeta n'est pas en reste. Celui-ci a accusé des activistes pro-Maïdan d'avoir piraté son site, inaccessible vendredi matin. Dans ces médias qui relayent les mots d'ordre du Kremlin, les troupes russes présentes en Crimée sont transformées en «groupes locaux d'autodéfense». » | Par Pierre Avril | vendredi 07 mars 2014
Krise in der Ukraine: Steinmeier sendet klare Worte nach Moskau und Kiew
Lage zwischen Russland und Westen bleibt angespannt
German President Apologizes for Nazi-era Massacre
A visibly emotional German president laid a wreath Friday at a monument in northwestern Greece to villagers massacred by German soldiers during World War II, at the end of a three-day visit that combined political talks with efforts to bring closure to wounds from the German wartime occupation of Greece.
Joachim Gauck expressed "shame" at the 1943 atrocity at Ligiades, where Nazi troops executed dozens of villagers, including months-old babies, in reprisal for a partisan attack: "With shame and pain I ask the families of those murdered for forgiveness in Germany's name."
The German president emphased: "I pay my respects to the victims of the monstrous crimes mourned here and in many places across Greece." » | Associated Press | Friday, March 07, 2014
Pentagon Confronting Putin with 'Second Best' Units?
Netanyahu on Ukraine Situation, Seized Iranian Arms Shipment
Diplomacy Falters as Putin Rebuffs Obama on Ukraine
Nick Clegg: 'Nigel Farage Wants to Turn the Clock Back'
 |
| Nick Clegg wants to be seen as the Stop Farage candidate in the European elections. |
In perhaps the most cited speech of any Liberal leader, Jo Grimond closed the Liberal assembly in 1963, ahead of the 1964 election, with the promise: "I intend to march my troops to the sound of gunfire."
Nick Clegg, as he faces the European elections in May, has set his party on the same course. Faced with ever growing hostility to the EU, and to immigration, Clegg has decided to present the Liberal Democrats unambiguously as the party of "in" and of openness. He wants to be seen in these elections as the Stop Farage candidate and to make the debate about the very character of Britain. The planned TV debate with the Ukip leader will give him a chance not just to stand up to Farage, but to stand up for a Britain that does not want to hide.
There is an element of calculation in this. In a crowded field the Liberal Democrats risk being ignored and dumped into fourth place with Ukip replacing the Lib Dems as the amorphous party of protest. The Lib Dems may well be the party of in, but also come polling day the party of out, with all 12 of its MEPs expelled from the European parliament. It's not an outcome that Clegg discounts, saying simply if he is to lose any of his MEPs the thing he would hate most is losing them without a fight. » | Patrick Wintour, political editor | Friday, March 07, 2014
Merkel Backs Call for EU School Lessons to Counter 'Growing Euro-scepticism'
 |
| German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny |
School students should be given a "European Union education" in the classroom to tackle "ignorance" and growing public Euro-scepticism, according to an election manifesto signed by Angela Merkel and eight other of Europe's leaders.
The European People’s Party (EPP), the EU’s biggest political grouping, is convinced such a programme would improve the public image of Brussels, which has never been lower.
Its manifesto for May’s European elections calls for the introduction of “EU education in schools across Europe in order to prepare the next generation for future challenges and to nurture a European approach”.
“Europe has been in crisis for more than five years. Many people, especially the young, do not foresee a positive future. Euroscepticism is growing,” the manifesto said.
“United, we can make sure that young people look at the future with optimism, hope and confidence.” » | Bruno Waterfield, Brussels | Friday, March 07, 2014
Putin Mocks the West and Threatens to Turn Off Gas Supplies
Vladimir Putin has mocked diplomatic efforts to end the Ukraine crisis as Russia threatened to disrupt European gas supplies by cutting off sales to Kiev over its unpaid debts.
The Russian president said through his official spokesman that, despite deep disagreements with the West, he did not want a confrontation over Ukraine to spiral into a “new cold war”.
Nevertheless Dmitry Peskov ridiculed Western demands for direct talks between the Kremlin and the new Kiev government, claiming that the loss of credibility involved “puts a smile on our face”.
The remarks were broadcast during the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi, where the Ukrainian athlete carrying her national flag was given a loud cheer.
Earlier, Gazprom, Russia’s state-owned energy giant, said it would start to reduce deliveries to Kiev, a move that would disrupt supplies to Europe. Gazprom said Ukraine had failed to make payments on its £1.2 billion debts. » | Damien McElroy, Donetsk | Friday, March 07, 2014
Muslim Brotherhood Is a Terrorist Group, Says Saudi Arabia
 |
| Pro-Morsi protestor flashes the four-finger sign for the Muslim Brotherhood TV channel, Rabaa, during a rally in Istanbul. |
Saudi Arabia has formally designated the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist group in an official report on Saudi television.
Citing a statement by the interior ministry, the report added that the Nusra Front and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isis) – whose fighters are battling the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad – were also classed as terror organisations.
The move on Friday appeared to enforce last month's royal decree in which Riyadh said it would jail any citizen guilty of fighting in conflicts overseas for up to 20 years. The authorities want to deter Saudis from joining rebels in Syria, fearing they could pose a security risk when they return. » | Reuters in Riyadh | Friday, March 07, 2014
Afghanistan Still One of the Worst Places to Be a Woman, Says EU Ambassador
President Hamid Karzai's government has let down Afghan women, according to the new EU ambassador to Kabul, who singled out the failure to end prosecution of rape victims and other abused women for "moral crimes" as a particular "disgrace".
Franz-Michael Mellbin said that despite huge practical improvements in areas from maternal mortality to the number of girls in schools, Afghanistan was still one of the worst places to be a woman and a frontline in the global battle for women's rights.
Mellbin, who previously served in Afghanistan as the Danish envoy, declined to criticise Karzai directly but said the government overall had failed in its responsibilities to be a voice for women's rights, as conservatives opposed to women having any role outside the home gathered strength. » | Emma Graham-Harrison in Kabul | Friday, March 07, 2014
Hannity: Why I Said I'm Humiliated for My Country
Worlds Apart: 'US Economic Leverage Against Russia Limited': Dr Angela Stent
Wie Hitler Österreich "eroberte" !
Das deutsche Wien – Der Anschluß – März 1938
Doku: Hitlers Österreich: Der Anscluß
Durch das am 13. März 1938 von der österreichischen Bundesregierung -- ohne Parlament -- verabschiedete Gesetz über die Wiedervereinigung Österreichs mit dem Deutschen Reich wurde die Diktatur des Ständestaates bzw. des Austrofaschismus (seit 1934) vom nationalsozialistischen Regime unter Adolf Hitler abgelöst.
Mit diesem Tag endete die staatliche Existenz Österreichs. Die Zeit der NS-Herrschaft in Österreich sollte fast bis zum Ende des Zweiten Weltkrieges im Mai 1945 dauern.
Hillary Clinton Compares Putin to Hitler
Krim will zu Russland: Russland wird die Krim willkommen heissen
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)