Deportations to Pakistan Suspended

ꕤ Article SOURCE http://www.reuters.com/article/us-pakistan-eu-idUSKCN0T70S220151118 World | Wed Nov 18, 2015 2:19am EST Related: World Pakistan suspends deal to accept deportations from Europe ISLAMABAD | By Katharine Houreld Pakistan will refuse to accept any citizens deported from mainland Europe, halting repatriations at a time when European leaders facing an influx of migration are desperate to streamline procedures, the interior ministry said on Wednesday. Globally, around 90,000 people were deported back to Pakistan last year for a variety of offences, but in some cases they had been sent back without proper determination they were Pakistan nationals, an interior ministry spokesman said. It was not immediately clear exactly how many came from Europe, although the figure is in the thousands, he said. European Union nations signed a deal with Pakistan in 2009 allowing them to repatriate illegal immigrants and other nationalities who transited through Pakistan on their way to Europe. "There were some irregularities in the implementation of this agreement," the spokesman, who asked not to be named, said. "The signing country had to first verify the nationality of that person who was being deported but there were instances where the nationality was not being verified. The minister took notice and the agreement is temporarily suspended." EU officials in Pakistan were not immediately available for comment on the Pakistani decision. Europe is facing its biggest influx of migrants in decades, with many families fleeing war in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. Some European leaders are calling for tighter controls over fears of Islamic State infiltration after attacks in Paris last week killed 127 people and injured around 200. Pakistan's refusal to accept deportees could slow down the removal of illegal economic migrants, making it harder to accept those genuinely fleeing persecution. On Tuesday, Pakistan Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar said that airlines returning deportees without Pakistani permission would be penalized. "Any airline that brings deportees to Pakistan without Interior Ministry permission and without Pakistan travel documents will be fined heavily," he said. Britain has a separate deal on deportations with Pakistan and is not affected by Tuesday's decision. Nisar added that Pakistan would not accept any deportees accused of militant links without clear evidence of guilt. "Accusing any Pakistani of terrorism without evidence is human rights violation," he said. As an example of problems with the system, the interior ministry cited the case of a Pakistani deported from Italy earlier this year who had been accused of militant links. "When the FIA (Federal Investigation Agency) investigated, it was found he just visited jihadi websites," the spokesman said. (Additional reporting by Syed Raza Hassan in Karachi; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani) http://www.reuters.com/article/us-pakistan-eu-idUSKCN0T70S220151118 ---------------------- ꕤ ---------------------- COMMENT Are Western European politicians completely INSANE? The sane option would be to have some very unpleasant holding ground that's off-shore and well away from Europe, where all invaders (no matter what their status or identification status) are immediately shipped to, where they shall remain (put to work), for as long as it takes to identify and process them them. And if that takes decades of processing, it shouldn't be a problem if violators of sovereign territory are put to useful work that profits the state. What's the bet that the prospect of immediate quarantined penal detention and forced hard labour at an off-shore site would abruptly put an end to the illegal immigration to Europe? Investment in acres of barbed wire and land-mines along all southern European borders, and gun ships authorised to deploy weapons on any and all unauthorised entry, wouldn't go astray as back-up. Yes, I'm well aware that this does not accord with human rights laws, but those laws can be by-passed by making national laws superior. The 'human rights' nonsense has to go.  Europe is going under if it doesn't toughen up and take the attitude that those that violate European sovereign territory shall not be granted or entitled to any rights upon territory they have invaded, as non-members of the tribe (people) that is heir, inhabitant, and absolute controller of such sovereign territory. Reading this and having read prior accounts of how difficult it is to deport invaders, it's beyond me why anybody would champion laws and principles that are irrational, as well as impractical, costly, and damaging to targeted host populations, which are bled financially and otherwise imposed upon. Universal human rights principles are based on the irrational premise that all things are equal, when they're not. I don't have anything in common with Western liberal human rights defender types  ...  I'm more into hierarchies of things and into specifics, rather than into broad, sweeping ideals. ꕤ

WikiLeaks: Oil Motivates U.S. Policy More than Fighting Terrorists - Nafeez Ahmed

ꕤ Article SOURCE alternet | here Wikileaks' Cables Suggests that Oil Motivates U.S. Policy More than Fighting Terrorists Cables released by Wikileaks demonstrate that control of the world's strategic energy reserves has always been a key factor in the direction of the "War on Terror". By Nafeez Mosaddeq Ahmed / Foreign Policy in Focus December 16, 2010 Among the batch of classified diplomatic cables recently released by the controversial whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks, several have highlighted the vast extent of the financial infrastructure of Islamist terrorism sponsored by key U.S. allies in the ongoing "War on Terror." One cable by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in December 2009 notes that “donors in Saudi Arabia constitute the most significant source of funding to Sunni terrorist groups worldwide.” Despite this, “Riyadh has taken only limited action to disrupt fundraising for the UN 1267-listed Taliban and LeT [Lashkar e-Tayyiba] groups that are also aligned with al-Qaeda.” Clinton raises similar concerns about other states in the Gulf and Central Asia. Kuwait remains reluctant “to take action against Kuwait-based financiers and facilitators plotting attacks outside of Kuwait.” The United Arab Emirates is “vulnerable to abuse by terrorist financiers and facilitation networks” due to lack of regulatory oversight. Qatar’s cooperation with U.S. counter-terrorism is the “worst in the region,” and authorities are “hesitant to act against known terrorists.” Pakistani military intelligence officials “continue to maintain ties with a wide array of extremist organizations, in particular the Taliban [and the] LeT.” Despite such extensive knowledge of these terrorism financing activities, successive U.S. administrations have not only failed to exert military or economic pressure on these countries, but in fact have actively protected them, funneling billions of dollars of military and economic assistance. The reason is oil. It's the Hydrocarbons, Stupid Oil has always been an overwhelming Western interest in the region, beginning with Britain’s discovery of it in Persia in 1908. Britain controlled most Middle East oil until the end of World War II, after which the United States secured its sphere of influence in Saudi Arabia. After some pushback, Britain eventually accepted the United States as the lead player in the region. “US-UK agreement upon the broad, forward-looking pattern for the development and utilization of petroleum resources under the control of nationals of the two countries is of the highest strategic and commercial importance”, reads a 1945 memo from the chief of the State Department’s Petroleum Division. Anglo-U.S. geo-strategy exerted this control through alliances with the region’s most authoritarian regimes to ensure a cheap and stable supply of petroleum to Western markets. Recently declassified secret British Foreign Office files from the 1940s and 1950s confirm that the Gulf sheikhdoms were largely created to retain British influence in the Middle East. Britain pledged to protect them from external attack and to “counter hostile influence and propaganda within the countries themselves.” Police and military training would help in “maintaining internal security.” Similarly, in 1958 a U.S. State Department official noted that the Gulf sheikhdoms should be modernized without undermining “the fundamental authority of the ruling groups.” The protection of some of the world’s most virulent authoritarian regimes thus became integral to maintaining Anglo-U.S. geopolitical control of the world’s strategic hydrocarbon energy reserves. Our governments have willingly paid a high price for this access – the price of national security. Still Funding Radicalism One of al-Qaeda’s chief grievances against the West is what Osama bin Laden dubs the “Crusader-Jewish” presence in the lands of Islam, including support for repressive Arab regimes. Under U.S. direction and sponsorship, many of these allies played a central role in financing and supporting bin Laden’s mujahideen networks in Afghanistan to counter Soviet influence. It is perhaps less well understood that elements of the same regimes continued to support bin Laden’s networks long after the Cold War – and that they have frequently done so in collusion with U.S. intelligence services for short-sighted geopolitical interests. In fact, Afghanistan provides a rather revealing example. From 1994 to 2001, assisted by Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, the Clinton and Bush II administrations covertly sponsored, flirted and negotiated with the Taliban as a vehicle of regional influence. Congressman Dana Rohrabacher, former White House Special Assistant to Ronald Reagan, also testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on South Asia about the “covert policy that has empowered the Taliban,” in the hopes of bringing sufficient stability to “permit the building of oil pipelines from Central Asia through Afghanistan to Pakistan.” The Great Game is still in full swing. “Since the U.S.-led offensive that ousted the Taliban from power, the project has been revived and drawn strong U.S. support” reported the Associated Press in 2005. “The pipeline would allow formerly Soviet Central Asian nations to export rich energy resources without relying on Russian routes. The project’s main sponsor is the Asian Development Bank” – in which the United States is the largest shareholder alongside Japan. It so happens that the southern section of the proposed pipeline runs through territory still under de facto Taliban control, where NATO war efforts are focused. Other evidence demonstrates that control of the world’s strategic energy reserves has always been a key factor in the direction of the "War on Terror". For instance, the April 2001 study commissioned by then-Vice President Dick Cheney confirmed official fears of an impending global oil supply crunch, energy shortages, and “the need for military intervention” in the Middle East to maintain stability. Energy and Iran Other diplomatic cables released by Wikileaks show clearly that oil now remains central to U.S. policy toward Iran, depicting an administration desperate to “wean the world” off Iran’s oil supply, according to the London Telegraph. With world conventional oil production most likely having peaked around 2006, Iran is one of few major suppliers that can potentially boost oil output by another 3 million barrels, and natural gas output by even more.  The nuclear question is not the real issue, but provides ample pretext for isolating Iran. But the U.S. anti-Iran stance has been highly counterproductive. In a series of dispatches for the New Yorker, Seymour Hersh cited U.S. government and intelligence officials confirming that the CIA and the Pentagon have funneled millions of dollars via Saudi Arabia to al-Qaeda-affiliated Sunni extremist groups across the Middle East and Central Asia. The policy – officially confirmed by a U.S. Presidential Finding in early 2008 – began in 2003 and has spilled over into regions like Iraq and Lebanon, fuelling Sunni-Shi’ite sectarian conflict. Not only did no Democratic members of the House ever contest the policy but President Obama reappointed the architect of the policy – Robert Gates – as his defence secretary. As former National Security Council staffers Flynt and Hillary Mann Leverett observe, Obama’s decision earlier this year to step up covert military operations in North Africa and the Middle East marked an “intensification of America’s covert war against Iran.” This anti-Iran directive, which extends covert U.S. support for anti-Shi’ite Islamist militant networks linked to al-Qaeda, hardly fits neatly into the stated objectives of the "War on Terror." Unless we recognize that controlling access to energy, not fighting terror, is the primary motive. Beyond Dependency While classified covert operations continue to bolster terrorist activity, the Obama administration struggles vainly to deal with the geopolitical fall-out. Getting out of this impasse requires, first, recognition of our over-dependence on hydrocarbon energy sources to the detriment of real national security. Beholden to the industry lobbyists and the geopolitical dominance that control of oil provides, Western governments have supported dictatorial regimes that fuel widespread resentment in the Muslim world. Worse, the West has tolerated and until recently colluded in the sponsorship of al-Qaeda terrorist activity by these regimes precisely to maintain the existing global energy system. Given the convergence of peak oil and climate change, it is imperative to transition to a new, renewable energy system.  Such a transition will mitigate the impact of hydrocarbon energy depletion, help prevent the worst effects of anthropogenic global warming, and contribute to economic stability through infrastructure development and job creation. By weaning us off our reliance on dubious foreign regimes, a shift to renewables and away from supporting oil dictatorships will also make us safer. Nafeez Mosaddeq Ahmed is executive director of the Institute for Policy Research & Development in London and a contributor to Foreign Policy In Focus. His latest book is A User’s Guide to the Crisis of Civilization: And How to Save It (2010). He blogs at The Cutting Edge. SOURCE alternet | here ---------------------- ꕤ  ---------------------- COMMENT Another great article. I'm hopeless at taking everything in at once.  Will have to do some really brief notes for myself. So when the West isn't actively sponsoring Middle Eastern terrorism, the West overlooks sponsorship of terrorism by British-installed sheikdoms, favourably disposed to US and allied interests that keep them propped up in power? The US has muscled in on Britain's Middle Eastern turf post-WWII, and Britain plays second banana to the US in the region, while the US is BFF with Saudi Arabia, until the oil runs out. The key regional Western-propped dictator (Western-puppet ... or is that partner?) regimes, sponsoring terrorism and sectarian kill-fests (to maintain their self-serving and exploitative power grip on the region), are: Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Pakistan. Surprised that Pakistan is there, although I know Pakistan's terrorist central.  Why?  Pakistan seems like odd man out. The Brits made a deal that should be void:  ie protecting the puppet monarchs from *internal* challenges ... which effectively means taking part in enslaving these populations under the control of these Western propped monarchies or other dictatorships, because it precludes the rise of anything remotely close to 'proper democracy' (if that's actually possible ... anywhere), I would think. British pledges to protect don't mean much, unless there's something in it for the British (I think it was Persia that they slimed out of protecting some time around the turn of last century or perhaps just before that): "... when Britain failed to defend Persia in the Russo-Persian War of 1826-28-a course of inaction which Britain was fully justified in taking because Persia had started the war and the 1814 mutual defense agreement obligated Britain to defend Persia only against aggression-the Shah concluded that Britain was an unreliable ally, and in effect he went over to the Russian side." [here] Wow, that was way earlier than I thought.  It was the early 1800s.  The Shah concluded correctly, in my opinion. lol  Stick with the Russians, Persia. Bin Laden wasn't happy about the Western support for repressive regimes in the region; but it also sounds like there's maybe a religious and cultural element to OBL's objection, judging by the terminology used:  'Crusader-Jewish'?  Or maybe I'm reading too much into that? Looks like OBL had forgotten that Islam itself was spread in the region through conquest of people and territories.  Not that the West is planning on spreading any ideology ... it's only profits for the wealthy that matter. Asian Development Bank, Japan and USA have a stake in a pipeline project that is intended to run through Taliban controlled territory and this is where NATO concentrated its aggression.  So, wherever NATO is, profit is?  With Obama's blessing, Robert Gates was the mastermind of a policy backing Sunni extremist vs the Shia side in the region (against Iran's interests),  while US GOVERNMENT, US INTELLIGENCE, the PENTAGON and CIA funnelled dollars for this project, via Saudi Arabia, who, in turn, flicked the dollars to al-Qaeda.  It's thanks to Gates' policy that there's a spread of sectarian violence in the Middle East, including Iraq and Lebanon.  The funnelling of money that reached al-Qaeda is confirmed (presidential finding, 2008).  So this isn't speculation. So, I take it there's no organised Islamic 'war on terror' 'death cult' about to attack anyone in here in the West, and there's only the random crazy head-chopping incident associated with the consequences of mass displacement and mass immigration, to sidestep when out and about, say, doing a spot of furniture shopping? That Robert Gates struck me as shifty and creepy looking when I saw him in this video, filmed on the day of Julian Assange's arrest in Britain, almost 5 years ago: ROBERT GATES US Defence Secretary in Afghanistan 7 Dec 2010 Associated Press https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3g9g9F6_TC4 If I hadn't got interested in Ukraine and then curious about Assange and WikiLeaks, I'd probably never have paid this creepy old man any attention.  And look what fun I'd have missed out on.  lol Imagine this guy knows where all the bodies are buried. So, Gates, the architect of Hell (ie the policy of funnelling American money to Sunni al-Qaeda affiliated terrorists, in the Middle East) has been free the last 5 years, while Australian journalist, Julian Assange, has been a political prisoner in Britain (Britain, which is America's Middle Eastern second banana partner in oil and crime) -- held without charge, for exposing US and allied war crimes, those same 5 years that Architect of Hell, Robert Gates, has been free. Ehem.  Western values?  Where's those Western values plate-face, Dave Cameron's been preaching, then?  Eh? How can this be permitted to happen in democracies, among free men? Can somebody please help Assange: Julian Assange Australian Journalist FAQ & Support https://justice4assange.com/ Assange Transnational Security Elite, Carving Up the World Using Your Tax Money London  OCT8 Antiwar Mass Assembly (2011) Link  |  here ----------- PS I'm hoping I'll remember some of this.  Terrible recall of facts.  lol But I've discovered that information has a mysterious way of seeping in without being aware that it has.  A couple of times I've written things I thought were original ideas ... until I remembered where I'd read whatever it was that I'd laboured over ... for ages. It was rather upsetting to find out I'm not at all an original thinker.  lol ꕤ

Middle East - Brief Overview | Obama 7 Years, 7 Countries Bombed

Barack Obama: The Nobel Peace Prize Winner Who Bombed Seven Countries U.S. jets are bombing Syria again this month, part of an overall pattern of military expansion during the Obama administration that’s seen military involvement in dozens of conflicts. As the United States renews a bombing campaign against ISIS forces in Syria, it seems like America’s penchant for waging war knows no bounds. During the first seven years of Barack Obama’s presidency, the U.S. bombed seven countries while supporting other destabilizing military actions throughout the Middle East. Here’s a look at these seven countries and the effects of bombing: Afghanistan — Despite the announced “end” of the Afghanistan War, significant U.S. military presence in Afghanistan remains. Drones are a frequent presence in Afghan skies. One strike earlier this month killed 12 people, according to Iran’s PressTV. Iraq — The Obama administration has conducted over 5,000 airstrikes in Iraq and Syria in just the past year, David Lerman reported for Bloomberg Business. Despite ongoing U.S. military involvement ,terrorism continues to be a deadly presence in Iraq’s cities. Libya — While the European Union and its allies carried out many of the airstrikes during Libya’s civil war, the U.S. was instrumental in destabilizing that country through both military aid and direct support, especially during the lead up to Gen. Moammar Gadhafi’s overthrow in 2011. Now ISIS is also gaining a stronghold here and the country has been described as a failed state. Pakistan — Drone strikes are also frequent in Pakistan, where the Bureau of Investigative Journalism estimated that only 4 percent of the victims could be identified as al-Qaida members. Although drone strikes on Pakistan began under George W. Bush, their frequency has dramatically increased under Obama, RT reported last year.  Somalia — Over 100 U.S. troops have been stationed in Somalia since 2007, Reuters reported last year. In September, the U.S. again carried out airstrikes there, apparently killing Ahmed Abdi Godane, leader of the extremist group Al-Shabaab, which the U.S. claimed was allying with al-Qaida.  Syria — The U.S. renewed its bombing campaign against ISIS in Syria earlier this month, with U.S. war planes taking off from bases in Turkey. Airstrikes were also used in a failed attempt to defend “Division 30,” the failed American attempt to train so-called “moderate” Syrian rebels.  Yemen — U.S. cables revealed by WikiLeaks show that Yemeni officials have allowed airstrikes, which began under George W. Bush, to continue under the Obama administration. RT reported last year: “US bombing raids in Yemen are almost solely carried out by drones and they have been increasing in intensity in recent years. … A report by Human Rights Watch in 2013 analyzed six airstrikes in Yemen carried out since 2009. The organization found that out of the 82 people who died in the airstrikes, 57 were civilians. In all, the U.S. has bombed 14 predominantly Muslim countries since 1980. The death toll from all modern wars in the Middle East may be as high as 4 million dead Muslims and Arabs. Repeated military campaigns have destabilized the Middle East, giving rise to terror groups like ISIS, allowing for sectarianism to blossom, and necessitating further bombing, in what Ron Fullwood, writing for MyMPN, called a “perpetual protection racket.” 2015-08-19 Source http://www.mintpressnews.com/barack-obama-the-nobel-peace-prize-winner-whos-bombed-7-countries/208748/ VIA http://www.global-politics.eu/democraticus/2015/08/25/barack-obama-the-nobel-peace-prize-winner-who-bombed-seven-countries/ ---------------------- ꕤ  ---------------------- COMMENT Thought this was a good quickie overview of military action in the Middle East. I've not read the linked articles.  Might have to skim some of the articles, as I'm not at all familiar with what's going on. Sounds like drone strikes kill more civilians than they do terrorist targets. A hundred troops in Somalia doesn't seem like much. Syria's down for a regime change.  The West, Israel, and the US don't like Assad for some reason.  He's probably Iran and Russia friendly. The US and the West have already demolished Libya (in much the same way they're probably planning to demolish Syria), and the result is more extremists - which is supposed to help destabilise and weaken Syria, I think. Pakistan is 'terrorist central' (well, that's my impression).  Pakistan receives an ENORMOUS amount of military and other aid from the US, and the aid must come with US strings attacked - drones is probably part of the package.  There's a massive amount of resistance in Afghanistan - something's getting blown up all the time.  Five thousand airstrikes in Iraq, in a year, is huge.

Foreign Updates - Middle East, Asia, Random

Random #Diplomatic US press attaché Johann Schmonsees has denied reports embassy in Riyadh shut down over security concern http://www.arabianbusiness.com/us-saudi-embassy-denies-security-shutdown-603700.html Iran protests - UK embassy reopening - counter-revolutionary both to continue operating by charges d'affaires Iran critics say: UK embassy has record support for spying ops, organisation of street unrests & assassination of scientists http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/199789 New Chapter Tehran-London Ties: Iran’s Envoy all diplomatic activities to be gradually re-established http://www.tasnimnews.com/english/Home/Single/838016 #Lebanon Kuwaiti embassy issues Lebanon travel warning / Daily Star #Thailand #presse Hong Kong photojournalist detained at Bangkok airport for carrying bulletproof vest in luggage one of the highest gun homicide rates in Asia / on par with USA / pop 67 million 3.48 murders per 100,000 http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/hong-kong-photojournalist-detained-at-bangkok-airport-for-carrying-bulletproof-vest-in #Vietnam #Diplomatic #Spain NGO Pazy Desarrollo in co-operation with Spanish Embassy run gender equality project http://vietnamnews.vn/society/274879/project-promotes-gender-equality.html Michael Lynn - #Ireland fled Ireland in 2007 with debts of €80m extradition #Brasil #Brazil #LatAm http://www.irishtimes.com/news/crime-and-law/michael-lynn-should-be-back-by-year-end-to-face-charges-lawyer-1.2326185 #Turkey Albayrak Group to operate Mogadishu Interl Port / re-opened in 2006 by Islamic Courts Union, who control South Somali / dailysabah USA Spirit Lake police chief TAKES job as a bomb-sniffing dog handler US embassy in #Iraq or #Afghanistan http://www.kboi2.com/news/local/Spirit-Lake-police-chief-steps-down-to-take-US-embassy-job-322627872.html #Afghanistan Kabul vehicle bombing 10 dead 60 injured Taliban fighting to overthrow foreign-backed govt http://www.dispatchtimes.com/at-least-10-dead-in-kabul-vehicle-bombing/59556/ #MiddleEast US Embassy Warns Against Travel to Upper Galilee & Golan Heights Rockets launched from #Syria territory #Israel: points finger at: "Iran-backed Islamic Jihad from territory under the control of the Assad regime" http://forward.com/news/breaking-news/319634/us-embassy-warns-citizens-against-travel-to-upper-galilee-and-golan-heights/ #Pakistan Removes 5,000 names from Exit Control List (ECL) Passports Directorate Blacklist contained 52,000 names http://tribune.com.pk/story/943345/nisar-announces-removal-of-5000-names-from-ecl-in-major-overhaul/ #Pakistan Intelligence agencies rescue: Chinese tourist kidnapped 2014 in an area close to insurgency-prone regions. Kidnapped China tourist rescue: faction of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan claimed responsibility http://tribune.com.pk/story/943345/nisar-announces-removal-of-5000-names-from-ecl-in-major-overhaul/ #Australia #Syria US request to extend campaign Julie Bishop says Australia is seeking legal advice on Syria strikes USA has asked for Aussie support manned strikes, intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, air refuelling etc http://forexreportdaily.com/2015/08/24/7334-julie-bishop-says-australia-is-seeking-legal-advice-on-syria-strikes/ #Nigeria Zone 6 Police took delivery of #surveillance helicopter in Calabar / combat of militancy & kidnap http://nationalaccordnewspaper.com/2015/08/police-receives-surveillance-helicopter-to-boost-fight-against-militancy-in-cross-river/ ---------------------- ꕤ  ---------------------- COMMENT Names being removed from a travel blacklist in Pakistan is rather intriguing.  Don't really understand why they've got a blacklist.  Maybe this is normal?  A bad guy travel blacklist? Action hotting up Syria / Israel border, by look of things? Turkey might be a player in Somalia. Islamic Union control in south.   That's a look-up job; don't know what this is. Photojournalist arrested Thailand sounds interesting, but it's probably routine. Thailand no longer sounds safe.  Well, it never did to me; but I'm weird like that.  ;) Pakistan definitely doesn't sounds safe.  Thailand a better bet.  lol This just random stuff that caught my attention ... nothing exciting. ꕤ

Foreign Service Updates - China-Pakistan Economic Corridor

India China blocked India’s move in UN against Pakistan re release of Mumbai attack mastermind Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi http://www.freepressjournal.in/china-defends-zaki-ur-rehman-lakhvi-stand/ China-Pakistan Economic Corridor  Beijing’s greater strategic plan Airport, roads & railways construction at China control port signed Pakistan infrastructure & energy the focus China to build 6.5-billion nuclear power plant in Karachi oil pipelines planned Planned construction pipeline from Gwadar’s port to northwestern China China + Pakistan =  longtime strategic & diplo co-op China-Pakistan Economic Corridor OIL pipelines to China: *Kazakhstan *Turkmenistan *Pakistan - from Gwadar’s port to nthwest China {pending} src:  http://thediplomat.com/2014/02/china-pakistan-flesh-out-new-economic-corridor/ China–Pakistan Eco. Corridor devel megaproject Gwadar Port Pak to China Xinjiang highways, railways & pipelines - oil +  gas Blockade in war of Straits of Malacca path = 80% of China energy imports China-Pak Eco Corridor creates alternative routes China energy imports:  80% imported energy supplies from Middle East & West Africa. China creating x3 new routes. 3 new energy routes China *Guangzhou to Pak *Shanghai to Uzbekistan, Teheran/Iran & port in Persian Gulf *Beijing thru Russia Potential sea blockade imposed by US if East Asia conflict =  China ways to bypass sea lanes subject to US naval dominance  CPEC-related activities = worth $50.6 billion *China smart - option to chose alternative if Pak doesn't deliver on time CPEC Pakistan faces challenge of maintaining political stability& consensus & assuring security.  ARTICLE + diagram China-Pakistan Economic Corridor  http://tribune.com.pk/story/887949/china-pakistan-economic-corridor-lines-of-development-not-lines-of-divide/ Gwadar port - Pakistan = bankrolled for decade by China = China govt co 2013 manages port India fear of 'string of pearls' China  "string of pearls" = network of China naval bases encircling India from sea =  cramping India maritime aspirations Western Pacific = China is  rising naval challenger facing off vs seagoing hegemon, USA South Asia = China looks to Indian eyes like the seagoing hegemon of the future. CPEC India unease at  Pakistan-China corridor + port / affect on maritime balance of power in Indian Ocean India vulnerability + USA primacy (East Asia) = concern re network of Chinese bases Gwadar site - does have vulnerabilities Gwadar site Pakistan = exposure to missile attack = Gwadar wartime use to China not guaranteed *but very good economically CPEC China - String of Pearls source article:  http://thediplomat.com/2013/02/gwadar-and-the-string-of-pearls/ Pakistan “guns over butter” military over economic Pak has nuclear weapons but yet to achieve a reliable source of energy  [thediplomat] Pakistan economic policy dominated by: desire to maintain a military-industrial complex capable of competing against India but real boosts to Pak economy are:  agriculture, chemicals, textiles & manufactured goods (tradable on global market) [thediplomat] Pakistan = access to Indian Ocean = good access to markets, East & West = interl reach> diaspora = 3rd largest English-speaking pop in world Pak *failure w/in political sphere to respond to Taliban + reactionaries *rampant inflation *serious lack of currency reserves http://thediplomat.com/2014/02/the-pakistan-china-corridor --------------------- COMMENT Found this very interesting.  Very good articles.

For the Love of Oil: Pakistan PM Assassination by Americans & USA-British Iran Coup

Pakistan's first Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan was assassinated by America By Abdus Sattar Ghazali, The Milli Gazette Online Published Online: Apr 27, 2015 Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan, Pakistan's first Prime Minister, was assassinated on October 16, 1951 while addressing a public meeting in the garrison city of Rawalpindi. His assassin, later identified as Saad Akbar Babrak was shot dead on the spot. Saad Akbar Babrak was an Afghan national and a professional assassin. For more than 63 years controversy continued about the motives and perpetrators after the assassination of Liaquat Ali Khan. Conspiracy theories abounded with little to substantiate. However, the controversy is now coming to end as declassified documents of the US State Department disclosed that Americans murdered the first elected prime minister of Pakistan through the Afghan government. The US documents, released several years ago but highlighted recently by the Pakistani media and social media. A leading English newspaper of Pakistan, the Nation and also the Express News reported on April 17: The United States wanted to get contracts of oil resources in Iran. Pakistan and Iran enjoyed cordial ties and Afghanistan used to be the enemy of Pakistan during 1950-51. The neighboring Afghanistan was the only country that didn’t accept Pakistan at that time. The US demanded Pakistan use its influence in Tehran and persuade it to transfer control of its oil fields to the US. Liaquat Ali Khan declined to accede to the request, saying that he would not use his friendship for dishonest purposes. On which, then US President Harry Truman had threatened Liaquat Ali Khan. Not only that, Liaquat Ali Khan also asked US to vacate air bases in Pakistan within next 24 hours, dropping a bombshell on Americans. Americans didn’t find a suitable person in Pakistan and then turned to Afghanistan for this purpose, according to the documents. Washington contacted the US Embassy in Kabul, offering Zahir Shah to search a murderer. Afghan government had found a man Syed Akbar to take the job and also made arrangements for him to be killed on the spot. All three stayed at a local hotel in Rawalpindi. Akbar fired and Liaquat Ali Khan fell, saying Allah help Pakistan. Two persons killed the murderer of Liaquat Ali Khan at the spot while crowd also massacred the two persons in order to leave no sign of the conspiracy. The bullets used to kill the Pakistani prime minister were not easily available in the market. Coup against Mossadegh Not surprisingly, August 1953 the CIA staged a coup against the Iranian nationalist Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh to safeguard the west's oil interests in the country. In April 1951 Iranians democratically elected the head of the National Front party, Dr. Mohammad Mossadegh, as prime minister. Mossadegh moved quickly to nationalize the assets in Iran of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (the forerunner of today’s BP) a step that brought his government into confrontation with Britain and the US. Britain’s MI6 military intelligence then teamed up with the CIA and carried out a coup that ousted Mossadegh in August 1953 and returned Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi to power. In August 2013, 60 years after the coup, the CIA admitted staging a coup against Mossadegh though at least two US Presidents, Bill Clinton and Barrack Obama, have publicly acknowledged the US role in the Iranian coup. "The military coup that overthrew Mossadegh and his National Front cabinet was carried out under CIA direction as an act of US foreign policy, conceived and approved at the highest levels of government," reads a previously excised section of an internal CIA history titled The Battle for Iran. The declassified documents, under the US Freedom of Information Act, related to CIA’s TPAJAX operation that sought regime change in Iran through the bribery of Iranian politicians, security and army high-ranking officials, and massive anti-Mossadegh propaganda that helped to instigate public revolt in 1953. Mossadegh was replaced with Iranian general Fazlollah Zahedi, who was handpicked by The  CIA and M16. Mossaddegh was later sentenced to death, but the Shah never dared to carry out the sentence. Mossadegh died in his residence near Tehran in 1967. The Shah’s pro-Western dictatorship continued for 27 years and ended with the Islamic Revolution of 1979, which paved the way for today’s Iran, where anti-American sentiments remain strong. The 1953 coup still casts a long shadow over Iranian-US relations. Liaquat Ali Khan visits USA Going back to the assassination of Liaquat Ali Khan which came almost two years after his visit to the United State in May-June 1950. His visit perhaps set the tone of Pakistan's foreign policy because he disregarded an invitation to visit the Soviet Union. In December 1949, Liaquat Ali Khan received an invitation from President Truman to visit the USA. This was readily accepted and the visit took place in May 1950. While on US soil, Liaquat confirmed that he intended to visit the Soviet Union. Liaquat's visit to USA brought the two countries closer. This was shown by Pakistan's support for the use of force by the UN in June 1950 against North Korea to secure its withdrawal from South Korea, as also support for the peace treaty negotiations with Japan in 1951. The Soviet Union opposed both of these developments. In October 1949, the Communists came to power in China. The US strongly opposed this development and refused to recognize the Communist regime. It continued to recognize the ousted Kuomintang regime of Gen. Chiang Kai-shek as the legitimate government of China. The US also managed to prevent most countries in the world from recognizing Communist China which was thus kept out of the UN as well. However, Liaquat Ali Khan decided to extend recognition to Communist China in January 1950. The Chinese Ambassador arrived in Karachi in September 1951, a month before Liaquat's death, and the first Pakistani Ambassador presented credentials in Beijing in November 1951. Pakistan thus became the first Muslim country, and one of the few countries in the world, to establish diplomatic relations with Communist China. This shrewd decision laid the foundation for strong relations with China that have since become a pillar of Pakistan's foreign policy. When Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan visited the USA, Pakistan was non-aligned between the US-led Western Bloc and the Soviet-led Eastern Bloc and it had recognized the Communist-led People's Republic of China, ignoring Washington's opposition to Peking. It was Pakistan's membership of US backed military pacts in 1954 that aroused Soviet hostility. The Soviet veto on Kashmir was not applied until 1957. The Soviets themselves have never put the blame for unfriendly relations on the inability of Liaquat Ali Khanto visit the Soviet Union. As the declassified documents of the US State Department reveal, Liaquat Ali Khan, was victim of politics of oil resources grab by the U.S. and British oil companies. Abdus Sattar Ghazali is the Chief Editor of the Journal of America (www.journalofamerica.net) email: asghazali2011 at gmail.com blog comments powered by Disqus Social-icon-fb Social-icon-tw Social-icon-ml Social-icon-yt Social-icon-rss http://www.milligazette.com/news/12191-pakistan-s-first-prime-minister-liaquat-ali-khan-was-assassinated-by-america COMMENT Thought this was a pretty cool article.  Didn't know that the US had assassinated a Pakistani PM. The Iran coup also probably demonstrates how the US managed to pull off the Ukraine coup.  Bribery of key figures & propaganda work just as well today as they did in the 50s.

FOREIGN SERVICE UPDATES

Sweden refused to renew a 10-year-old weapons deal w SaudiArabia Saudi ambassador recalled / diplomatic rift SaudiArabia = 3rd largest non-Western buyer of Sweden arms @ 338 million kronor ($39 million) 2014 Right-wing Svenska Dagbladet says:  Swedish industry “must be allowed to trade ... even with dictatorships.” http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2015/Mar-12/290479-saudi-arabia-recalls-envoy-to-sweden-after-military-ties-cut.ashx DAILY STAR - EXTRACT [...] Swedish Foreign Ministry spokesman Gabriel Wernstedt said the Saudis were recalling their ambassador because of “Sweden’s criticism regarding human rights and democracy” in the ultraconservative kingdom. The official Saudi Press Agency reported that the Saudi Foreign Ministry recalled its diplomat because it considered remarks by Sweden’s foreign minister about the kingdom as “blatant interference it its internal affairs. Saudi Arabia is the third largest non-Western buyer of Swedish arms. In 2014, Riyadh bought equipment worth 338 million kronor ($39 million). [... ] But an opening speech she was due to give in which she stressed human rights, with a particular emphasis on rights for women, was canceled. The speech was later published by the Swedish Foreign Ministry. Wallstroem has rarely commented on Saudi Arabia but in January she condemned the kingdom’s treatment of blogger Raef Badawi, who had been sentenced to 1,000 lashes and 10 years in prison for insulting Islam. [...] Wallstroem told news agency TT Wednesday her government had made the “correct” decision by ending the agreement. “I feel that when I speak about democracy and human rights, I do with the support of the Swedish people.”  [Oh, please.  What about the human rights of ethnic-Russian citizens of eastern Ukraine & supporting their murder by supporting the Proshenko Ukraine puppet govt.?] [...] The Swedish Defense Minister Peter Hultqvist said Tuesday only cooperation in medicine and gender studies would remain on offer. “What we have is an open invitation to partake in medical and gender training, but the Saudi side has not shown any interest.” [...] Commenting on the severed military ties, liberal writer Fredrik Segerfeldt wrote that Sweden’s objective was “to become a moral power” on the world stage. But taking a stance against Saudi Arabia today risked Sweden’s credibility as a business partner, according to some center-right opposition politicians and the Swedish business community. “Foreign policy is not only about other countries,” right-wing daily Svenska Dagbladet wrote in an editorial, noting that Swedish industry “must be allowed to trade ... even with dictatorships.” -- COMMENT RE SWEDEN ARMS DEAL CANCELLATION: "Swedish people must be so proud of their leaders. Exciting to see principles come before money for once." Ummm, I'm not actually convinced of this.  Swedish politics as a whole is not geared to serve 'principles before money'.  Some sectors of Sweden's politics may well genuinely believe in this, and there may have been a push that forced the cancellation; but overall, politics, trade and military (which serves trade & other interests) are not geared to function on bleeding heart principles. BANGLADESH EXAMPLE Dhaka Bangladesh Sweden Embassy + Business Sweden co-host Swe bus. delegation - power, telecommunications, roads, bridges + transport  Ambass: Johan Frisell - nonchalant re political climate for biz Sweden  11 large Sweden corporations delegates attend http://bdnews24.com/business/2015/03/11/swedish-business-delegation-in-dhaka-to-explore-investment-prospects Bangladesh / Sweden  Trade is dominated by the textile & ready-made garments. abt. USD$338-m (I think) {30bn Tk} Hey, Sweden ... Govt crackdown: civil & media Atheist bloggers arrested, activist in prison & more http://www.hrw.org/world-report/2014/country-chapters/bangladesh If Sweden is to operate on human rights & principles basis, doing business in Bangladesh (& probably most of the rest of the world) might prove a problem.  Most Sweden business is in garments & textiles. I smell SWEAT SHOPS.   http://bdnews24.com/business/2015/03/11/swedish-business-delegation-in-dhaka-to-explore-investment-prospects Sweatshops in Bangladesh 3.5m workers produce goods for export global market, primarily:  USA & EU 85%  However, Bangladesh women producers have little improvement in lives: http://www.waronwant.org/overseas-work/sweatshops-and-plantations/sweatshops-in-bangladesh GOLDMINE  Not only SWEATSHOPS vs HUMAN RIGHTS but also WOMEN exploited vs FEMINIST GOVT SWEDEN ... -- USA - where's the transparency?  Report:  Only .00006 Percent of State Dept. E-mails Archived 2011 http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/email-fraction-archived-official/2015/03/11/id/629628/  Hillary Clinton --  Kenya US embassy Trivia: 19 federal USG agencies operating out of US Embassy Kenya as at 2012 -- Morocco has recalled its ambassador from Nigeria Morocco denies its King spoke on phone to Goodluck Nigeria insists phone conversations took place Morocco claims using King re election campaign Morocco denies Nigeria's further assertions http://www.360nobs.com/2015/03/morocco-closes-its-embassy-over-fallout-with-federal-government/ -- Pakistan US Ambassador to Lebanon David Hale reassignment to Pak. Not yet official nomination {extensive Middle East experience} http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Lebanon-News/2015/Mar-12/290475-us-ambassador-hale-may-be-posted-to-pakistan.ashx -- Charles S Cohen Chairman of Cohen Media Group to be honoured France for promo French cinema in US http://www.prurgent.com/2015-03-11/pressrelease378605.htm  Film Media France Cultural Services of French Embassy = platform > French +  US artists, intellectuals, educators, students, tech etc -- Georgia Iran diplomatic spat Georgia Justice Min. Tsulukian China, Iran, Iraq + Egypt entry 'undesirable' http://www.eurasianet.org/node/72481 Georgia said to be pandering to anti-immigration voters Georgia says abiding by: association agreement signed w EU in 2014. -- D-Day Mission Bulgaria GREAT Mega Mission 2015 4-day initiative of UK largest visit of its kind to Bulgaria + Romania UKTI 2020 double trade aim [publics.bg] Bulgaria UK 50 top UK coys, 200 Bulgarian delegates Eyeing: >nuclear >oil + gas >mass transport >water & enviro http://www.publics.bg/en/news/12152/GREAT_Mega_Mission_2015_in_Bulgaria.html -- UK shadow foreign secretary says pursuing reopening of the UK embassy in Iran British grovelling ... mistakes made http://tehrantimes.com/politics/122509-shadow-foreign-secretary-says-he-pushes-for-reopening-uk-embassy-in-iran- -- UK Opened New Consulate in India, the Seventh [Prensa Latina] Ahmedabad Bangalore Chandigarh – new – {Large Punjabi Community in UK} Chennai Delhi - High Commission (embassy) Goa – tourist info office Hyderabad Kolkata Mumbai Pune – Commercial Office -- LOL... Timely UK suck job ingratiation {for trade}: Statue of Mahatma Gandhi for Parliament Square in London on Sat David Cameron attending Hammond attended opening new consulate. Slaughter of independence supporters by British Amritsar Punjab 1919 not mentioned. Amritsar Punjab 1919 Slaughter by British =  over 400 dead, incl. many women & children http://www.plenglish.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3610931&Itemid=1 -- #Turkey Syrian citizen, #Canada spy actively helped 3 teenage UK girls pass into Syria to join ISIS admitted on payroll of Canada intelligence #Canada - a #NATO ally knee-deep in #ISIS http://www.dailysabah.com/columns/ilnur-cevik/2015/03/14/canada-has-much-to-explain-about-isis-links #Canada Embassy Jordan run by Bruno Saccomani hand-picked former bodyguard to Stephen Harper linked to an interl terrorism & spy scandal #Canada   -   Ooh La La SPY SCANDAL - ISIS #Syria intel operative Mohammed Mehmet Rashid     — dubbed Doctor Mehmet Rashid     x3 London schoolgirls http://news.nationalpost.com/2015/03/13/safety-minister-silent-amid-claims-that-the-spy-accused-of-helping-girls-join-isis-was-working-for-canada/