Rene Magritte Memory 1948
Nap McGovern
CIA is Totally Corrupted
fmr CIA Analyst Ray McGovern @raymcgovern #CIA #Ukraine
see full vid: https://t.co/5UQ7lGDF9X pic.twitter.com/5edkXuVMej— Judge Napolitano (@Judgenap) March 21, 2023
Kirby
https://twitter.com/i/status/1638236804905070602
Debt
IF YOU GOT 2 MINUTES WATCH THIS VIDEO pic.twitter.com/LpcN115zVi
— GURGAVIN (@gurgavin) March 21, 2023
Djokovic
Djokovic: No regrets about vaccination status
Source:https://t.co/9C7otNLx3T pic.twitter.com/97yarYnhsV— Wittgenstein (@backtolife_2023) March 21, 2023
“..Kiev’s backers are reportedly providing it with intelligence data as well as training, logistical support and weapons..”
• Ukraine Planning Major Attack On New Russian Territories – Bild (RT)
Russia and Ukraine and are approaching a decisive period in their conflict, with Kiev aiming to sever the Russian land bridge to Crimea this spring, Germany’s Bild newspaper has reported. The tabloid cited an anonymous NATO source who claimed the bloc is providing Ukraine with everything it needs to retake its former territories. In a report on Tuesday, Bild quoted a “leading” NATO official as stating that the alliance’s analysts expect the conflict to reach a climax in the spring and summer. The official expressed confidence that heavy weaponry being delivered to Ukraine will be brought to bear in several counteroffensives as early as May. “The coming six months will be a key period in the war not only for Ukraine, but also for the allies,” the unnamed source predicted.
While refusing to go into detail regarding planned operations, the official asserted that Ukrainian forces will focus their efforts on the regions of Zaporozhye and Lugansk. The main objective of the offensives will be to “sever the land bridge to Crimea,” the NATO source added. The official claimed that Ukraine is likely to mount counteroffensives in other regions as well, which will either be genuine or merely serve as distractions to preoccupy the Russian military. According to the Bild report, NATO is not ruling out a scenario in which Ukraine would attempt to retake Crimea, which joined Russia in 2014 following a referendum. “Kiev has the right to recapture all Ukrainian territory,” the official insisted.
In an effort to ensure the new offensives are successful, Kiev’s backers are reportedly providing it with intelligence data as well as training, logistical support and weapons. Speaking to the Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita on Monday, Czech President Petr Pavel said that the “window of opportunity” for Ukraine would only be open until the end of this year. The former general, who served as chair of the NATO Military Committee until 2018, argued that with elections approaching in the US in 2024, Washington is likely to reduce defense aid to Ukraine. Pavel said he expected European nations to follow suit. “Ukraine will only have one attempt to launch a major counteroffensive,” the Czech president claimed, adding that should this effort fail, “it will be extremely difficult to obtain funds for the next one.”
Cluster munitions and depleted uranium. What is wrong with us?
• Republicans Demand Cluster Munitions For Ukraine (RT)
Four Republican congressmen have entreated US President Joe Biden to send cluster munitions, a controversial weapon banned in 110 countries, to Ukraine, dismissing concerns about escalating the conflict as misplaced in a letter to the White House on Tuesday. The Biden administration shouldn’t hesitate to send cluster munitions – specifically dual purpose improved conventional munitions (DPICM) – because of “vague concerns about the reaction of allies and partners and unfounded fears of ‘escalation’,” Sen. James Risch (R-Idaho), Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Mississippi), Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), and Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Alabama) wrote in their letter. After all, they said, other countries have already sent such weapons without triggering Russian retaliation.
Acknowledging the weapons’ horrific effects, the signatories argued that while Ukrainian leaders are “aware of the risks to non-combatants,” the “existential threat posed by Russia’s invasion and daily acts of barbarity” is more important. Additionally, they claimed, “d,” US DPICM are equipped with “technologically advanced measures” that limit collateral damage. A 2008 UN treaty banned cluster munitions in 110 countries, including three-quarters of NATO member nations. It has been signed by another 13 countries, though neither Russia, Ukraine, nor the US are on that list. Ukraine is the only country where the deadly devices are currently in use, and both sides have been accused of deploying them in the conflict.
Aside from one attack in Yemen in 2009, the US has not used cluster munitions since it invaded Iraq in 2003 and has not produced any since 2016. Central Command has admitted the hundreds of smaller bombs they contain are often left unexploded across the strike area, posing risks similar to landmines to anyone – especially children – who encounter the odd-looking little “petal mines.” While the White House initially balked at Kiev’s request for DPICMs in December, it stopped short of a hard “no,” and the issue is reportedly still under consideration if the US runs out of available ammunition to ship overseas.
In April, 27 members of Congress denounced Russia’s alleged use of cluster munitions, calling them “barbaric and indiscriminate weapons” and urging Biden to join the UN convention. The current policy, they said, was “wholly unacceptable given what we know about the immediate and long-term damage done to societies on which they are deployed.” While the Republican Party’s 2022 campaign platform stressed curtailing the Biden administration’s blank check to Kiev, the Pentagon announced another $350 million in weapons just this week, to be drawn from the US’ own stockpiles.
Opening the door to radioactive material.
• Putin Warns UK Against Plan To Supply Depleted Uranium To Ukraine (RT)
Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned London against the planned delivery of depleted uranium (DU) armor-piercing tank rounds to Ukraine, saying the weapons will be treated by Moscow as containing “nuclear components.” Putin commented on British plans to include DU munitions in a forthcoming delivery of Challenger 2 main battle tanks as he spoke alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping following talks in Moscow on Tuesday. “I would like to note that if this happens, then Russia will be forced to react accordingly, bearing in mind that the collective West has already started to use weapons with a nuclear component,” he stated. A similar warning was issued by Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu on the sidelines of the Russia-China talks, who said the move would bring the world yet another step closer to a nuclear disaster.
“Another step has been taken, and there are fewer and fewer left,” Shoigu told reporters. The looming delivery was announced on Monday by Annabel Goldie, the UK minister of state at the Ministry of Defence, as she responded to a written inquiry on the matter. She confirmed the plans to deliver DU rounds to Kiev, lauding them as a highly effective weapon. “Alongside our granting of a squadron of Challenger 2 main battle tanks to Ukraine, we will be providing ammunition including armor-piercing rounds which contain depleted uranium. Such rounds are highly effective in defeating modern tanks and armored vehicles,” Goldie said. The DU munitions have long been the subject of international controversy, with critics of their use highlighting the toxicity and radioactivity of the material. Depleted uranium is used to make the hardened cores of armor-piercing rounds, excelling in this role due its high density. The round’s core evaporates on impact, turning into aerosol and contaminating the environment with uranium.
The UN has already expressed alarm over the UK plans. Farhan Haq, a spokesman for Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, told a media briefing that the international body had long voiced concerns about the consequences of DU use, as well as about those who supply such weaponry. These munitions were actively used by NATO during the First Gulf War, as well as during the bloc’s aggression against former Yugoslavia, both in the form of tank and aircraft artillery shells. The use of the munitions was acknowledged by NATO in a 2000 report, with the US-led bloc revealing that it had used some 10 metric tons of the material in Yugoslavia – and 300 metric tons in Iraq. The report acknowledged that the material poses a threat due to its toxicity in an “aerosol form,” but insisted the DU was not “particularly highly radioactive.”
Putin DU
https://twitter.com/i/status/1638213480787456002
The OPCW has shown which side it’s on.
• Russia Urges OPCW To Heed Info On Chemical Weapons At Kramatorsk – Envoy (TASS)
Russia urged member states of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to pay serious attention to the information on Ukrainian Neo-Nazis plotting a provocation with chemical weapons in Kramatorsk, Russia’s Permanent Representative at the OPCW and Ambassador to the Netherlands Alexander Shulgin told an online briefing on Tuesday. “Much attention [at the OPCW Executive Council’s session] was paid to the issue of the threat of a chemical provocation in Ukraine. We fully used the materials of the briefing by Chief of the [Russian] Radiation, Chemical and Biological Protection Troops Igor Kirillov and reported about Ukrainian nationalists’ preparations for chemical provocations at the factory in the area of the city of Kramatorsk on Ukrainian territory,” the envoy said.
The report pointed to “hazardous chemicals and actually the US Army’s service weapons BZ of psychotropic effect,” Shulgin said. “We called on the member states to pay serious attention to this information and make relevant conclusions,” he said. The Americans together with their allies denied all these facts and “tried to present the situation in a way that allegedly Russia was on the point of using chemical weapons,” the envoy pointed out. The Russian side responded by rejecting all these accusations, he said. “We cited facts to show that the Americans can hardly teach us how to treat the chemical convention. We gave a long list of wrongdoings by the Americans who themselves breach the chemical convention,” Shulgin stressed, recalling that the United States had “secretly destroyed chemical munitions from the arsenals of Saddam Hussein in Iraq” and citing other facts.
“Beijing criticized Russia for sending troops into Ukraine, but also blamed the US and NATO’s expansion in Europe for triggering the crisis.”
• Ukraine Afraid To Criticize China – Politico (RT)
Ukraine has refrained from criticizing China over its close ties with Russia in the hope of attracting future investment from Beijing, Politico has claimed. This stance comes in stark contrast to the angry tirades that Kiev has directed at the likes of Hungary and Germany for their perceived lack of anti-Russian zeal, according to the media outlet. In an article on Tuesday, Politico reported that besides the desire for Chinese investment, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky is seeking to maintain lucrative trade relations with the Asian economic powerhouse, and is eyeing Beijing as a potential mediator in the conflict with Russia.
The media outlet quoted Aleksandr Merezhko, the head of the Ukrainian parliament’s foreign policy committee, as explaining: “There is fear that if we start criticizing China more harshly, Beijing will use it as an excuse to strengthen its aid to Russia, and even start providing military aid.” Beijing has consistently rejected claims that it intends to offer lethal aid to Moscow, and has accused Washington of “spreading false information” by alleging that China is weighing up weapons deliveries. Last month, China put forward its own peace proposal on the first anniversary of the conflict in Ukraine. Politico noted that Zelensky reacted to Beijing’s 12-point plan by saying that his country “can work on it with China.”
This response was in marked contrast to the way Ukraine’s Western backers dismissed the proposal out of hand, according to the media outlet. Merezhko argued that Zelensky’s current strategy toward Beijing is prudent, though he holds out “little hope of real help from China.” At present, relations between Kiev and Beijing have reached crisis point, the official told Politico. Merezhko cited China’s consistent refusal to distance itself from Russia, as well as the fact that Ukraine “has clearly chosen the path of Euro-Atlantic integration.” This effectively pits Kiev against Beijing, Merezhko argued.[..] Beijing criticized Russia for sending troops into Ukraine, but also blamed the US and NATO’s expansion in Europe for triggering the crisis.
Xi 100 years
https://twitter.com/i/status/1638254349817114662
Trying?!
• United States Trying To Paint Russia As An Enemy – Patrushev (TASS)
The United States and its minions are trying to turn the world against Russia by sowing hatred against the country and attempting to discredit it, Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolay Patrushev said on Tuesday. Patrushev noted that an independent Russia, which defends the interests of a multipolar and just world, “does not suit the United States, which hides behind its own made-up theory of American exceptionalism, as it has gotten used to toying with the norms of international law, dictating to and imposing its own values and terms on the rest of the world, to have vassals instead of partners.” “That is why, by painting Russia as the enemy, the United States and its minions are sowing hatred towards our country and its people, are trying to discredit the Russian world and force the international community into a confrontation with our country,” he added.
“Toward that end, all manner of dirty, vile methods for conducting information warfare are being utilized: bald-faced lies, baseless and unsubstantiated accusations, and staged incidents, such as, for example, those in Bucha, Mariupol and Kramatorsk. Moscow was even initially accused of blowing up the Nord Stream pipelines,” he said. “All of this is directed at forcing neoliberal values on us in place of traditional Russian spiritual and moral values that have stood the test of time over many centuries, to deprive our people of pride in their own country and its centuries-long history, as well as to undermine the social cohesion that was a crucial element in defeating fascism in 1945,” Patrushev continued.
He pointed out that those now proclaimed as the winners of World War II were the same countries that waited to open a second front until June 1944, when the Red Army was already “within a stone’s throw from Berlin.” Ukraine and a number of other European countries are tearing down monuments and memorials to heroes of the Great Patriotic War, while at the same time glorifying Nazi collaborators, Patrushev continued. “By encouraging neo-fascism, the collective West is seeking to consign all of the terror and misery wrought by the Nazi ideology to oblivion. Tomorrow will mark 80 years since the tragedy in Khatyn, where fascists burned all the residents of that village alive, including 75 children. We will never forget this,” Patrushev concluded.
“Hungary refused to participate in the joint funding of ammunition supplies to the Ukrainian army.”
• Direct Conflict Between NATO, Russia To Lead To World War – Hungary FM (TASS)
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has warned NATO countries against engaging in a direct conflict with Russia following a meeting with the bloc’s Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Brussels on Tuesday. “According to the current arrangement, NATO is not engaged in the war in our vicinity. This is how it is now. A direct conflict between NATO and Russia would lead to another world war,” Szijjarto wrote on Facebook (banned in Russia as it is owned by Meta Corporation designated as extremist by the Russian authorities). Hungary’s government said after the start of the conflict in Ukraine that it would not send weapons to Kiev, and also called for resolving the issue solely by peaceful means. On Monday, Szijjarto reiterated this position at an EU foreign ministers’ meeting in Brussels. He added that Hungary refused to participate in the joint funding of ammunition supplies to the Ukrainian army.
“Budapest’s position is likely to come up when EU leaders meet for a summit in Brussels this week..”
• Hungary Blocks Joint EU Statement On Putin’s ICC Arrest Warrant (RT)
Hungary has blocked European Union member states from issuing a joint statement about an international arrest warrant against Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to people familiar with the matter, Report informs referring to Bloomberg. Budapest’s veto meant that the EU’s chief diplomat, Josep Borrell, instead released a statement in his own name “taking note” of the decision by the International Criminal Court. “The EU sees the decision by the ICC as a beginning of the process of accountability and holding Russian leaders to account for the crimes and atrocities they are ordering, enabling or committing in Ukraine,” Borrell said in the statement published on Sunday evening. EU justice ministers issued their own statement supporting the ICC decision on March 20, which Hungary did not sign.
The ICC issued arrest warrants for Putin and his commissioner for children’s rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, for alleged war crimes relating to the abduction of children from Ukraine. Officials in Kyiv are investigating more than 16,000 suspected cases of forced deportation of minors, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said last week, and so far only around 300 have been brought home. The warrants are mostly symbolic for now, and Moscow has dismissed the move. Budapest’s position is likely to come up when EU leaders meet for a summit in Brussels this week. Draft conclusions seen by Bloomberg currently state that the leaders’ council “takes note of the arrest warrants recently issued by the ICC, against Russia’s president and his commissioner for children’s rights, for the war crime of unlawful deportation and transfer of Ukrainian children from occupied areas of Ukraine to Russia.” That’s similar to the wording Borrell used.
150,000 ethnic Hungarians live in modern Ukraine’s Transcarpathian Region..
• Hungary Gives Ukraine EU, NATO Membership Ultimatum (RT)
Ukraine will not be allowed to join the EU or NATO until it restores the rights of ethnic Hungarians living in its Transcarpathian Region, Hungary’s Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Tuesday. Speaking at a press conference in Brussels, Szijjarto added that the US-led military bloc was violating its own rules by pushing ahead with a set of meetings involving the Kiev government despite Budapest’s objections. “I would like to say that we will not support any significant integration movement of Ukraine towards the EU or NATO until the rights of the Hungarian ethnic community that it had prior to 2015 are restored in Ukraine,” the foreign minister told reporters.
Around 150,000 ethnic Hungarians live in modern Ukraine’s Transcarpathian Region, just across the border from Hungary. Budapest will not give up on them “under any circumstances,”despite pressure from both sides of the Atlantic to do so, Szijjarto added. He also objected to the convening of the NATO-Ukraine Committee on ministerial level despite Budapest’s objections. “This decision violates NATO’s unity and procedures for the unity of will,”Hungarian government spokesman Zoltan Kovacs said on Tuesday, referring to the bloc’s consensus requirement.
Szijjarto has voiced his objections to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, but agreed to attend the April 4 meeting for the “opportunity to discuss minority protections.” Hungary became a member of NATO in 1999 and joined the EU in 2004. In recent months, Brussels has withheld funding from Budapest in an attempt to compel the government of Prime Minister Viktor Orban to implement a set of policies championed by the bloc, which he has rejected as harmful. Hungary has consistently argued for a negotiated end to the hostilities in Ukraine. Budapest continues to prohibit any transit of weapons or ammunition through Hungarian territory, and has not agreed to supply Kiev with arms or ammunition.
“..the West believes that, if it succeeds against its main adversaries, Russia and China, it can easily regain control over everyone else..”
• US/Russia/China Standoff Big Opportunity For Second-tier Powers (Bordachev)
We are currently dealing with a confrontation in which the opposing sides are comparable military powers – Russia and the United States, although the latter is acting through intermediaries. Russia is also a major player in the global markets for energy, food and a range of other commodities for which demand is stable. Standing behind Russia is China, which, like Moscow, is a permanent member of the UN Security Council and wields considerable influence in the world. In other words, we have a unique example of a struggle in which the forces of the adversaries are roughly comparable, although the superiority of the West, in many areas, is considerable. And we do not know how the countries of the world majority would behave if the US and Europe launched an offensive against a weaker opponent – Iran or another country of comparable size, for example.
It is therefore impossible to speculate on the extent to which the assertiveness of those countries which ignore US orders now would have manifested itself in a different situation. This could be important in the future, as new conflicts involving a major nuclear power cannot be ruled out. In general, it is difficult to determine how much of the behavior of most countries is restrained by their own capabilities. It is generally accepted that this has become the main determinant of the actions of a wide range of states, from the wealthy monarchies of the Gulf to those of Southeast Asia. But there is no denying that their degree of dependence on the infrastructure of the outgoing liberal world order, led by the United States, remains very high.
Undoubtedly, the dramatic events of 2022 have set in motion the aspirations of many medium and small powers to gain practical tools for their autonomy. But they still have a long way to go. Perhaps this is why the West believes that, if it succeeds against its main adversaries, Russia and China, it can easily regain control over everyone else. And until the comparative individual capabilities of small and medium-sized states become serious enough to allow them to be truly self-reliant, Western self-confidence will continue to push the US and Western Europe into confrontational behavior. At the moment, the majority of the world’s countries are seeking short-term gains from the general turmoil caused by the struggle between the great powers. But the extent to which such tactical gains can form the basis of a long-term strategy is unknown.
“We’re always for peace and dialogue, and we firmly stand on the right side of history,” Xi stated.”
• US Does Not Let Ukraine Even Consider Negotiating – Moscow (RT)
Ukraine’s Western backers – and the US in particular – are doing their best to prevent Kiev from entering into any negotiations with Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said. The official made the remarks on the sidelines of the talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, in Moscow on Tuesday. Peskov was asked to comment on recent statements by senior Western officials, who said any peace initiative for Ukraine, should it arise from the Russia-China talks, would be “unacceptable.” US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby, for example, claimed any ceasefire in the current situation would only “ratify Russia’s conquest to date” rather than contribute to peace.
“Washington, European capitals, but first of all, Washington is filled with the desire not to let, under any pretext, [Kiev] enter into peace negotiations. They simply do not let Kiev even think about it,” Peskov said. Asked whether it was now ‘normal’ to incite war rather than call for peace, the spokesman responded affirmatively. “Now, when the masks are off, everyone shows off their bestial grin. Except for us and China.” During the talks, Russian and Chinese leaders discussed the 12-point roadmap for peace in Ukraine that was recently proposed by China. Putin has lauded the initiative, expressing his readiness to discuss and build upon it, while also reiterating Moscow’s desire to seek a diplomatic solution to the hostilities, which have been dragging on for over a year.
“We believe that many of the provisions of the peace plan put forward by China are consonant with the Russian stance and can be taken as a foundation for a peaceful settlement when they are ready for it in the West and in Kiev. However, so far we have not observed such readiness on their part,” Putin said after the meeting. The Chinese president has insisted that Beijing continues to maintain its position on the conflict and has urged both sides to stick to diplomacy and engage in dialogue. “We’re always for peace and dialogue, and we firmly stand on the right side of history,” Xi stated.
Reason enough for the US to go to war.
• Russia Ready To Switch To Yuan In Foreign Trade – Putin (RT)
Russia is ready to increase settlements in yuan in its foreign trade, President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday during talks with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, who is in Moscow on a three-day official visit. “We are for the use of Chinese yuan in settlements between Russia and the countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America. I am sure that these forms of settlements in yuan will be developed between Russian partners and their counterparts in third countries,” Putin said. Two thirds of current trade between Moscow and Beijing is carried out in national currencies – the yuan and the ruble, the Russian president noted. China’s trade with Russia hit a record high in 2022, growing by nearly a third amid Western sanctions against Moscow. Bilateral trade is on pace to hit over $200 billion this year.
The latest data from the Bank of Russia shows the yuan has become a major player in Russia’s foreign trade, with its share in the country’s import settlements jumping to 23% by the end of last year from only 4% in January 2022. The yuan’s share in export settlements also surged, from 0.5% to 16%. “It is important that national currencies are increasingly used in mutual trade. This practice should be further encouraged, and the mutual presence of financial and banking structures in the markets of our countries should be expanded,” Putin added. Meanwhile, the share of the US dollar and euro in Russia’s export settlements last year dropped substantially, from 65% in January 2022 to 46% in December. In February, the Chinese currency overtook the dollar as the most traded currency on the Russian stock market for the first time ever, according to data from the Moscow Exchange.
Max Keiser
https://twitter.com/i/status/1638312091399471104
“..A countrywide reputation with prudent financial management, sound regulatory oversight and, frankly, for being somewhat dour and boring regarding investments, has been wiped away..”
• Switzerland Risks Becoming ‘Financial Banana Republic’ – Industry Expert (RT)
The troubles of once-major Swiss investment bank Credit Suisse is undermining Switzerland’s reputation as a global financial hub, says Opimas CEO Octavio Marenzi, as cited by CNBC on Tuesday. His warning follows a historic takeover of Credit Suisse by the UBS Group, its domestic rival. On Sunday the two banking giants announced a Swiss-government-brokered deal aimed at shoring up public confidence in the Western financial system and at averting a global crisis. UBS agreed to acquire the embattled bank for three billion Swiss francs ($3.2 billion) as part of a cut-price deal. “Switzerland’s standing as a financial center is shattered,” Marenzi reportedly said, adding that “The country will now be viewed as a financial banana republic.” “The Credit Suisse debacle will have serious ramifications for other Swiss financial institutions. A countrywide reputation with prudent financial management, sound regulatory oversight and, frankly, for being somewhat dour and boring regarding investments, has been wiped away,” Marenzi stated.
The landmark merger, which may well turn UBS into the world’s largest wealth manager, with more than $5 trillion in total invested assets, has nevertheless sparked concerns about the health of the acquired assets. Investors have been also raising fears about the write-off of $17 billion worth of Credit Suisse’s AT1 bonds, which was part of the merger deal. The move angered many debt-holders, who have been left empty-handed, and has revealed yet another banking-sector risk. Former European Central Bank vice president Vítor Constâncio has called the write-off decision a “mistake with consequences and potentially a host of court cases.” There are also concerns about the long-term benefits of the merger and the outlook for other banks in Switzerland, which has previously been viewed as a role model of sound banking.
“..citing sanctions on Russia..”
• Indonesia To Ditch Visa And Mastercard (RT)
The Bank of Indonesia is preparing to phase out Visa and Mastercard while introducing its own domestic payment system, Antara news agency reported on Monday, citing the regulator. Last week, Indonesian President Joko Widodo urged regional authorities to wean themselves away from foreign payment systems and start using cards issued by local banks. He argued that Indonesia needed to shield itself from geopolitical disruptions, citing the sanctions targeting Russia’s financial sector from the US, EU, and their allies over the conflict in Ukraine.“Be very careful. We must remember the sanctions imposed by the US on Russia. Visa and Mastercard could be a problem,” he said. Commenting on the initiative, the central bank’s spokesperson, Erwin Haryono, said that the regulator was in talks with local businesses “and the progress is about 90%,” adding that domestic cards will have many advantages, including lower fees.
Also, according to him, “offshore settlements and dependence on foreign payment networks such as US Visa or Mastercard will no longer be necessary.” Board member of the Indonesian Credit Cards Association (AKKI), Dodit Proboyakti, told RIA Novosti that Indonesia would apply the experience of Russia and its Mir payment system to promote the domestic financial network. Indonesia’s interbank system, GPN, currently supports only local debit cards and requires some adjustments to properly serve credit cards and international transactions, according to AKKI executive director Steve Marta. Moscow rolled out its own national card system, Mir, soon after the US first targeted the country with sanctions in 2014, and created the domestic National Payment Card System (NSPK) to smoothly take over all Visa and Mastercard transactions should the US-based companies pull the plug.
“Not only did Bragg’s predecessor, Cyrus Vance, not bring this case, but Bragg himself stopped the prosecution..”
• Alvin Bragg Prepares the Ultimate Frankenstein Indictment (Turley)
The scene from the 1931 movie “Frankenstein” came to mind this week as Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg prepared an indictment of former President Donald Trump. It is the ultimate gravedigger charge, where Bragg unearthed a case from 2016 and, through a series of novel steps, is seeking to bring it back to life. Of course, like the good doctor, Bragg shows little concern over what he has created in his Frankenstein indictment. Bragg is combining parts from both state and federal codes.He is reportedly going to convert a misdemeanor for falsifying financial records into a prosecution of a federal crime. The federal crime is reportedly the failure to report a payment of $130,000 to former porn star Stormy Daniels to hush up an affair. That was just before the presidential election and Bragg is alleging that it was an effective campaign donation.
Bragg is attempting something that many lawyers think is as improbable as the reanimation of the dead. The Justice Department itself declined this prosecution and both the former chair of the Federal Election Commission and various election law experts have thrown shade on the theory. Not only did Bragg’s predecessor, Cyrus Vance, not bring this case, but Bragg himself stopped the prosecution. It was after one of Bragg’s lead prosecutors resigned and wrote a book on prosecuting Trump that pressure became too much for the district attorney, who grabbed his shovel and went to work. There are serious challenges to this prosecution, including an argument that time has expired under the statute of limitations.
The limit is two years for a misdemeanor and, even if he can convert this into a felony, it is not clear if he can meet the longer five-year limitation. Bragg will have to convince a court that Trump paid the hush money for the sole purpose of the election. As a married man and television celebrity, Trump had other reasons to try to avoid a scandal. That is precisely why such cases (like one against former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards) failed in prior prosecutions. However, the greater danger may come if he succeeds in moving this case to trial.
Michael Cohen’s lawyer exposes Cohen’s lies pic.twitter.com/zGEFeOpxMX
— James Hirsen (@thejimjams) March 22, 2023
Costello Tucker
“Wait a minute. You don’t have the hundreds of pages I handed over to Alvin Bragg over here? You only have six cherry-picked documents?”
• Alvin Bragg Caught Hiding Nearly 600 Pages Of Exculpatory Evidence (GP)
Attorney Robert Costello, the former legal adviser to Michael Cohen, spoke to Tucker Carlson on Monday night after he testified to the Manhattan Grand Jury investigating President Donald Trump. Costello told the FOX News audience that he testified for two hours in front of Alvin Bragg’s Manhattan Grand Jury. Robert Costello told Tucker Carlson, “I spoke to the jury for two hours… It was clear to me the Manhattan Grand Jury did not want to get to the truth.” And it now is being reported that New York District Attorney Alvin Bragg was HIDING exculpatory evidence from the Grand Jury! According to FOX News legal mind Gregg Jarrett, Soros-funded DA Alvin Bragg HID nearly 600 pages of exculpatory evidence to the New York Grand Jury investigating President Trump.
Gregg Jarrett: I mentioned it yesterday, I think, when Bob Costello got into that Grand Jury room and told them, “Wait a minute. You don’t have the hundreds of pages I handed over to Alvin Bragg over here? You only have six cherry-picked documents?” You know, hiding from grand juries exculpatory information is reprehensible and unconscionable. And the conduct of Alvin Bragg and his henchman Mark Pomeranz, who specifically says in his book, “We’re targeting zombies because we don’t like his beliefs,” those guys should face disbarment proceedings. Once again the REAL crooks reveal themselves. And Jarrett is right. If there was a real justice system in the country, they should be disbarred. Via Hannity:
Groundhog Day.
• Trump to Be Indicted Wednesday, Arraignment Next Week (GP)
Former President Donald Trump will be indicted on Wednesday and asked to surrender for arraignment in New York next week, according to a new report. “There will be no arraignment this week,” an unnamed source, said to be familiar with the proceeding, told the Daily Mail on Tuesday. The Mail reports that “the former president, who is currently in Florida, is expected to be formally charged tomorrow, after which the Manhattan District Attorney’s office will reach out to Trump and his Secret Service detail to make arrangements for his surrender.” After being flown to New York, he will be fingerprinted, arrested, and a mug shot will be taken.
Harmeet Dhillon
https://twitter.com/i/status/1637975259163885571
On Tuesday, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office responded to a letter sent by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan demanding that he testify before Congress about his “unprecedented abuse of prosecutorial authority.” The prosecutor’s office said that they will not be “intimidated” out of filing charges. “We will not be intimidated by attempts to undermine the justice process, nor will we let baseless accusations deter us from fairly applying the law,” a spokesperson for Bragg’s office told Fox News on Tuesday. “In every prosecution, we follow the law without fear or favor to uncover the truth. Our skilled, honest and dedicated lawyers remain hard at work,” the spokesperson added.
On Monday, Jordan had sent a letter to Bragg’s office saying, “in light of the serious consequences of your actions, we expect that you will testify about what plainly appears to be a politically motivated prosecutorial decision.” “Dear Mr. Bragg,” the letter began. “You are about to engage in an unprecedented abuse of prosecutorial authority: the indictment of a former President of the United States and current declared candidate for that office. This indictment comes after years of your office searching for a basis — any basis — on which to bring charges, ultimately settling on a novel legal theory untested anywhere in the country and one that federal authorities declined to pursue. If these reports are accurate, your actions will erode confidence in the evenhanded application of justice and unalterably interfere in the court of the 2024 presidential election.”
Redfield
🚨 Fmr. CDC Director Dr. Redfield: "This Pandemic Was Caused by Science"
"I think it was done probably as part of a biodefense program that largely was trying to make a vaccine vector…but unfortunately that virus escaped…probably somewhere in the September [2019] timeframe.… pic.twitter.com/Gm841fLuk7
— Chief Nerd (@TheChiefNerd) March 21, 2023
Kory IVM
Miracle Drug? The Vaccine-Injured Are Seeing Profound Results With Ivermectin
Why Is Ivermectin Helping?
– Multiple anti-inflammatory mechanisms
– Likely repolarizes some of the immune cells to a less inflammatory subtype
– Tightly binds to the spike protein@PierreKory:… pic.twitter.com/Sg3M1Zy5Y5
— The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) March 21, 2023
RFK
https://twitter.com/i/status/1638271365072445440
Ibex
The Alpine ibex, also known as the steinbock, is a species of wild goat that lives in the mountains of the European Alps. They live in extremely steep terrain, so finding one on a chimney of a house is not uncommon.
[source: https://t.co/JmV6YuBFYH]pic.twitter.com/iQ7do7Hxe9
— Massimo (@Rainmaker1973) March 21, 2023
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