Latin America: Article 98 Agreements & US Empire Influence & Control Arsenal

Article SOURCE *PART 4 https://www.greenleft.org.au/node/55410 Latin America: Article 98 Agreements & US Empire Influence & Control Arsenal SUMMARY / Understanding: SOURCE - *PART 4 https://www.greenleft.org.au/node/55410 Title:  "WikiLeaks shows how US threatened Ecuador" Tuesday, November 19, 2013 By Linda Pearson More: Part 1 https://www.greenleft.org.au/node/55239 Part 2 https://www.greenleft.org.au/node/55285 Part 3 https://www.greenleft.org.au/node/55320 SUMMARY / Understanding: *PART 4 Re:  4-part series | WikiLeaks revelations | US attempt to secure immunity for war crimes International Criminal Court (ICC) -- established at The Hague:  2002 -- investigate & prosecute: war crimes crimes against humanity crime of genocide 2002-2009 George W Bush admin  IMPOSES sanctions re:     1.  military aid     2.  economic aid         - Economic Support Funds (ESF) assistance re states refusing to sign Article 98 Agreements -- agreeing not to transfer US nationals to -- International Criminal Court (ICC) -- without consent of US govt -- Article 98 Agreements arose due to Bush admin fear -- US leaders & military could face court at The Hague -- for trial re war crimes & abuses committed during 'global war on terror'  *sanctions policy eventually lifted in order to give US domestic influence leverage, that it had denied itself as an unintended consequence of imposing sanctions. Reasons lifted / unintended consequences: -- US loss of influence LatAm -- reduction of LatAm sanctioned countries'    capacity to support US 'war on terror' -- reduction of LatAm sanctioned countries'    capacity to support US 'war on drugs' -- concern for unintended consequences of sanction policy on other US policy agendas   *example of unintended consequences:     eg. International Military Education Training (IMET) restricted by sanctions     *therefore US influence over military limited due to US sanctions     *concern that other countries (eg China) fill the gap     = unintended loss of overall US *influence* Including loss of ability to influence outcomes re key US agenda:  -- Free Trade Agreement -- Forward Operating Location (at Manta) -- security cooperation x12 LatAm Countries refused to sign Article 98 Agreement -- Ecuador one of those countries & was sanctioned by US Other US/Western means of influencing sovereign state: -- eg. via Ecuadorian military, urging them to lobby govt for Article 98 Agreement -- so Ecuadorian military could *regain* US military assistance -- withholding of equipment (eg. helicopters) -- joint special forces counter terrorism ops - using fancy US helicopters -- in hope of inducing officers to push superiors for similar  -- other US embassy intended efforts involved: personal diplomacy media 'education' *hosting round-tables w/ journalists to correct 'misconceptions' *potential INTERNATIONAL VISITOR (IV) PROGRAM for country's         -- think-do tanks         -- media circuit talking heads -- recasting existing US govt. assistance efforts as political ‘payback’ re Article 98 -- repackaging existing programs for maximum political benefit -- ESF cutbacks as pressure to reconsider     *not sure what ESFs are:  possibly 'Economic Support Fund' -- embassy seizes on new appointments to push agenda -- attempt to exploit military interest angle as leverage -- say to military leaders to 'concurrently lobby' their envoy -- lure: extradition of corrupt bankers suspected of embezzlement -- as trade off -- using International Military Education Training (IMET) -- as a cheap means of influencing another country's military 'DEMOCRACY' PROMOTION -- neocolonialist practice -- used by Western powers as a means to INFLUENCE POLITICAL & ECONOMIC CHANGE -- in countries of STRATEGIC INTEREST Ecuador -- neoliberal economic policies -- carried out by successive governments -- Western-backed -- increasing public opposition to neoliberal policies -- with THIRD-LARGEST OIL RESERVES in South America -- *Ecuador prime candidate for 'democracy' promotion US influence-seeking neocolonialist practice Sanctions on such a country by US / West:     1.  hinder ability to influence & effect change     2.  deny US influence over an entire generation of military staff     3.  undermines US govt. influence over local govts re reform tools (on central govt institutions)         -- incl. electoral tribunal         -- courts         -- trade & environment ministries Alfredo Palacio President Ecuador 2005-2007 VP 2003-2005 -- proposed constitutional referendum (to be negotiated w/in Ecuador congress) -- development considered involving *risk to US govt interests   US embassy, as part of it's 'democracy promo' Western neoliberal propaganda & influence ops routine: *planned on encouraging 'informed abate' re prosed reforms:      -- electoral      -- political US aimed protect following US interests from any proposed referendum: -- Free Trade Agreement -- Forward Operating Location (at Manta) -- security cooperation 2006:  Bush then lifts sanctions -- on the basis of US national interests *election of Palacio  -- successor Rafael Correa (2006) -- insufficiently controlled by US, hence justified US concern re lack of influence -- lack of influence/control risk to US strategic interests -- Ecuador had annulled operating contract (US firm:  Occidental Petroleum Corp) -- US deemed this 'seizure' of assets of US company -- *Ecuador would not sign free trade agreement with US -- 2007:  Correa follows through on electoral promise: -- US lease re Ecuador Manta airbase (US surveillance base) -- declined to be renewed by Ecuador -- 2008:  Ecuador adopts new constitition -- foreign military bases & foreign facilities for military purposes -- banned on Ecuadorian soil -- 2011:  Ecuador discontinues sending military to: -- US School of the Americas *graduates of US army training schools responsible for executing: -- US-sponsored:     -- coups     -- massacres     -- torture -- in LatAm since 1950s  SUMMARY SOURCE - *PART 4https://www.greenleft.org.au/node/55410 ---------------------- ---------------------- COMMENT THE MEANS OF INFLUENCE on foreign affairs from within foreign nations are extensive. It's hard to understand why anyone would want a US embassy around, when the US is looking to influence even the military along with other sections of society, in order to manipulate those inside their host nations to act towards manifesting what is favourable to US interests (and not necessarily favourable to the host population). No foreign nation ought to have any kind of influence on a sovereign nation's military. Ecuador did an amazing job of standing up to the US ... but that potentially makes Ecuador's politicians, institutions, activists etc, either targets of US aggression, or tools the subject of US influence ops, to be deployed to further US-serving aims.  Especially, seeing Ecuador has large oil reserves, which must be so attractive to the exploiting and pillaging empire. Iran and Cuba had better watch out, too, I think. [ Formatting this is sending me mental.  Blogger keeps inserting codes I don't want.]

"Ecuadorian President Says The CIA Is Attempting To Overthrow His Government" Derrick Broze

SOURCE http://www.mintpressnews.com/ecuadorian-president-says-the-cia-is-attempting-to-overthrow-his-government/203701/ For Full Article (with links to further information, go to source) Ecuadorian President Says The CIA Is Attempting To Overthrow His Government The CIA has a history of contributing to coups in Ecuador. Back in 1963, the CIA led a coup which deposed President Carlos Julio Arosemena because he criticized the United States and supported Fidel Castro’s revolution in Cuba. By Derrick Broze | March 25, 2015 (ANTIMEDIA) Over the weekend several outlets reported that Ecuador’s President Rafael Correa made comments alluding to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) “being increasingly involved in the political opposition with the avowed aim of dragging the country into chaos.”  The reports also claim Correa stated the CIA was attempting to weaken the government through “a series of coordinated nationwide protests.” However, Ecuador has released a statement claiming the president was speaking about the role of U.S. intelligence services meddling the county’s affairs and support of opposition groups, but not direct involvement in the recent protests. President Correa tweeted that the AFP incorrectly reported the news and accused the news agency of distorting the truth and misrepresenting his statements. de los “resistentes” hubieran sido organizadas por la CIA, no hubiesen sido tan estruendosos fracasos. AFP mintió. — Rafael Correa (@MashiRafael) March 23, 2015 While it seems in this instance Correa’s word may have been taken out of context, it would not be too surprising if he did make the accusation. For one, there are several reasons relations between the nations have been strained in recent years. In 2013, the Ecuadorian news agency ANDES accused the CIA of plotting to assassinate Correa. Ecuador has not made many political allies in America following the 2009 decision to no longer allow the U.S. to continue to use air bases for surveillance. The country also angered American politicians by granting Wikileaks founder Julian Assange asylum in its London Embassy. Correa may not be ready to point fingers at the CIA, but Chilean journalist Patricio Mery has claimed the CIA is running a drug operation in Chile, trafficking “about 200 kilos of cocaine per month” from Bolivia in order to fund anti-Correa operations. In recent years Italian police discovered 40 kilos of cocaine in Ecuador’s diplomatic mail. Mery believes senior Chilean officials were involved, and claims to have proof implicating the Ecuadorian government. Check out this interview for more on those allegations. The CIA has a history of contributing to coups in Ecuador. Back in 1963, the CIA led a coup which deposed President Carlos Julio Arosemena because he criticized the United States and supported Fidel Castro’s revolution in Cuba. But Ecuador is not the only nation the CIA has had a hand in toppling. In fact, the history of U.S. intervention and subversion is so rich that even mainstream reporters have to laugh in the face of government propaganda. Recently, State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki claimed “As a matter of long standing policy the United States does not support transitions by non-constitutional means. Political transitions must be democratic, constitutional, peaceful, and legal.” [Jen Psaki, US DoS, Spox] That statement drew a laugh and legitimate questioning from Associated Press reporter Matt Lee, who could not believe what he was hearing. [ ...] Iran, 1953 – The independent National Security Archive research institute published declassified documents that prove the CIA was involved in the 1953 overthrow of Iranian Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh. The documents are part of the CIA’s internal history of Iran and clearly indicate the agency’s role in disposing of a sovereign ruler. Guatemala, 1954 – Operation PBSUCCESS was another CIA operation that overthrew an elected leader and created more problems than solutions. President Jacobo Árbenz was removed and replaced with the military regime of Carlos Castillo Armas. Árbenz was a progressive politician who sought to change centuries of feudalism and reduce dependence on foreign nations and companies, including the United States and the American United Fruit Company (UFCO). His policies affected the finances of UFCO and the military intelligence desires of the CIA, leading to a coordinated attack and coup. Operation Condor, 1970’s – The United States’ support of crimes against the peoples of Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay, Bolivia, and Brazil are well-established fact. The CIA carried out Operation Condor, a campaign of political repression and terror involving assassination and intelligence operations implemented in 1975 by the dictatorships of South America. The United States government helped fund and support repressive regimes in each of these nations including Pinochet in Chile,  Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger was heavily involved in Operation Condor. Argentina – It has been suspected for years that Kissinger influenced Argentina’s decision to move forward with their repressive campaign. This was finally confirmed since in 2004 when the National Security Archive released a secret memo recounting a conversation between assistant Secretary of State for Human Rights, Patt Derian, and the US ambassador in Buenos Aires, Robert Hill. The two met in April 1977 and discussed a meeting between Henry Kissinger and Argentine Foreign Minister Cesar Augusto Guzzetti. Kissinger gives Guzzetti explicit permission to move forward with whatever they must do to repress “terrorism”. Paraguay – Another document uncovered by the U.S. National Archives shows the CIA’s involvement in Paraguay as well. A formerly secret CIA Directorate of Intelligence’s Office of African and Latin American Analysis research paper details how the agency never planned on allowing any opposition leaders from ever succeeding Paraguayan dictator General Alfredo Stroessner. The dictator ruled from 1954 to 1989 with the full support of the U.S. Stroessner trained at the infamous School of the Americas in Fort Benning, Georgia and supported the U.S. during the invasion of the Dominican Republic in 1965. Bolivia, 1971 – Bolivia’s reign of terror including killings, disappearances, and torture of political opponents and activists during the rule of  General Hugo Banzer. A declassified documents includes official transcripts of conversations between Nixon and his chief foreign policy architect, Henry Kissinger.  The leaders of the U.S. government financed and supported the Banzer coup with no regard for the lives of the Bolivian people. Shortly after the U.S. perfected its support of dictators with the rise of Augusto Pinochet. Chile, 1973 – Nixon, Kissinger, and the CIA helped remove socialist President Salvador Allende, and, following a brief rule by another military junta,  Allende’s army chief, Augusto Pinochet, seized power. Pinochet’s terror and torture has been heavily documented so I won’t go in depth here but it should be another reminder that the United States government once again succeeded in destroying a thriving, sovereign nation and recognized  immoral, violent, and tyrannical dictatorship as a illegitimate form of governance. Haiti, 2004 – A more recent example of a coup comes from the people of Haiti. Former Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide told CNN that he was forced to leave Haiti as part of a coup organized by the United States. George W. Bush denied the accusations and former White House press secretary Scott McClellan said it was “nonsense”. Shortly after Aristide was removed from power, his ex-wife told U.S. Rep. Charles Rangel, and Rep. Maxine Waters that he would be killed “and a lot of Haitians would be killed” if he did not voluntarily leave. The message had apparently been delivered by the chief of staff of the U.S. Embassy in Haiti. Honduras, 2009 – Wikileaks helped confirm that once more the U.S. was influencing foreign nations and overthrowing democratically elected governments. The U.S. embassy in Tegucigalpa sent a cable to D.C. making it clear that they believed the changing of power in Honduras that took place in June 2009, “constituted an illegal and unconstitutional coup.” The Embassy admitted that the military did not have the authority to remove President Zelaya, describing it as a “kidnapping”. The cable was viewed by Tom Shannon, then Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs; Harold Koh, the State Department’s Legal Adviser; and Dan Restrepo, Senior Director for Western Hemisphere Affairs at the National Security Council, and former Secretary of State Hilary Clinton. Despite this knowledge the U.S. continued to support and aid the nation. Clinton would later admit to playing a role. The New York Times even called the US State Department on the coup:     “It’s time to acknowledge the foreign policy disaster that American support for the Porfirio Lobo administration in Honduras has become. Ever since the June 28, 2009, coup that deposed Honduras’s democratically elected president, José Manuel Zelaya, the country has been descending deeper into a human rights and security abyss. That abyss is in good part the State Department’s making.     The headlines have been full of horror stories about Honduras. According to the United Nations, it now has the world’s highest murder rate, and San Pedro Sula, its second city, is more dangerous than Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, a center for drug cartel violence.     Much of the press in the United States has attributed this violence solely to drug trafficking and gangs. But the coup was what threw open the doors to a huge increase in drug trafficking and violence, and it unleashed a continuing wave of state-sponsored repression.” This is a very short list that does not even touch on the recent military aggression in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Yemen, and other Middle East nations that seem to be the next targets of US imperialism. It should be painfully clear that the United States government has a long history of creating, supporting, and funding illegal, unelected, military coups that fit into the current political narrative. For a more detailed list check here. (Yes, I know it is the Alternet. Follow the links, check sources and make up your own mind.) Without a doubt the United States has a history overthrowing sovereign nations that take steps to free their people from US and NATO hegemony. Is it that hard to believe they may working on similar plans in Ecuador? Derrick Broze is an investigative journalist, community activist, gardener and promoter from Houston, Texas. He is the co-founder of The Houston Free Thinkers, and The Conscious Resistance Network. Broze also hosts and produces a weekly podcast under the name the Conscious Resistance Live. His writing can be found on TheConsciousResistance.com , The Liberty Beat, the Anti-Media, Mint Press News, Occupy.com and Ben Swann.com SOURCE http://www.mintpressnews.com/ecuadorian-president-says-the-cia-is-attempting-to-overthrow-his-government/203701/ ---------------------- ꕤ ---------------------- TRANSCRIPT US State Dept False & Ludicrous Denial of Latin American & Ukraine US-Supported Coups | here   ---------------------- ꕤ ---------------------- COMMENT The recent British government aggressive propaganda attack, as well as a follow-up corporate media smear attack on  both Julian Assange and on Ecuador, had me wondering how much of a hand the US government has possibly had, behind the scenes, in maybe directing the recent trans-Atlantic media assault, and wondering what else may be taking place behind the scenes in relation to Ecuador and the Evil Fruit Company Empire (especially, seeing there's an Ecuador opposition figure - 'journalist' and 'activist' - that's been mentioned). While there's not a lot of information on US activities in Ecuador (in this article), I think US history in the region speaks for itself.  Get a load of that list of destruction for US corporate profit.  It looks like US intelligence services are supporting the Ecuador opposition (but there's some kind of denial, as well - which is confusing).  Well, US support for the opposition is standard US practice before installing puppet governments, so it wouldn't be surprising if the US had some kind of input.  Look at the evil empire's handiwork in Ukraine. ꕤ

TRANSCRIPT - US State Dept Ludicrous Claim: Long-Standing US Policy of Not Supporting Coups | Latin America

TRANSCRIPT  [for quotation purposes, confirm audio] SOURCE VIDEO  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frO1T3vZNrA&feature=youtu.be Via:  Democracy Now! Video Published:  11 Mar 2015 ---------------------- ꕤ  ---------------------- Female (Press) President Maduro last night went the on-air last night and said that they'd arrested multiple people who are behind a coup that was backed by the United States.  What is your response? US State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki These latest accusations, like all previous such accusations, are ludicrous.  As a matter of long-standing policy, the United States does not support political transitions by non-constitutional means.  Political transitions must be democratic, constitutional, peaceful, and legal.  We have seen many times that the Venezuelan government tries to distract from its own actions by blaming the United States, or other members of the international community, for events inside Venezuela.  These efforts reflect a lack of seriousness on the part of Venezuelan government to deal with the grave situation it faces. Matt Lee (Press) The US has - whoa, whoa, whoa.  The US has a long-standing practice of not promoting - what did you say?  How long-standing is that?  I would [chuckle] - in particular in South and Latin America, that is not a long-standing practice. US State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki Well, my point here, Matt - Matt Lee (Press) [Interjects] Not in this case - US State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki - without getting into history, is that we do not support, we have no involvement with, and these are ludicrous accusation. Matt Lee (Press) In this specific case [?] US State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki [Interjects] Correct. Matt Lee (Press) But if you go back, not that long ago, during your lifetime even. [background chuckle] US State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki This is the last 21 years? [laughter] Matt Lee (Press) Well done.  Touché.  But, I mean - does longs-standing mean 10 years, in this case.  I mean, what is - US State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki [interjects] Matt, my intention was to speak to the specific reports. Matt Lee (Press) I understand. But you said it's a long-standing US practice, and I'm not so sure.  It depends on what your definition of long-standing is. US State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki [Interjects] We will - OK. Male (Press) [Interjects] [... inaudible ...] in Kiev.  Whatever we say about Ukraine, whatever - the change of government in the beginning of last year was unconstitutional and yet [chuckles] you supported it.  The constitution was not - the constitution - US State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki [Interjects] That was also ludicrous. [Video cuts to Amy Goodman] Amy Goodman Democracy Now! That was State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki being questioned by reporters. Professor Miguel Tiner Salas, if you could respond to both that exchange and also Josh Ernest, State Department -- err, White House - spokesperson. Professor Miguel Tiner Salas Promona College I would have loved if that kind of exchange got a broader diffusion in the US press, but the fact is that it hasn't, and we continue to have the belief that the US does not - is not involved in unconstitutional change in Latin America and, as a historian, the record speaks just the opposite: from '53 in Guatemala, to the Dominican Republic, to Chile in '73, and through the ardent support of the Argentine military dictatorships, in Brazil.  And, if we want to go even closer, to 2002 in Venezuela, when the US did actually support a coup against the democratically elected Hugo Chavez - the shortest coup in the world and the coup that brought Chavez back to power.  And, then again, in Honduras in 2009 and, not shortly thereafter, in Paraguay with Fernando Lugo, where they said it was a democratic transition, when, in fact, it was an unconstitutional shift in power.  So, again, the notion that the US has not supported both military coups - directly, or through what they call 'soft power' - is really ludicrous and, in fact, we should turn the question around:  if they want to support democracy, I think the best thing the US can do, in the case of Venezuela and other countries, is to pull back and let things develop on their own.  I think you have a very strong opposition in Venezuela.  It can speak for itself.  And you have a government force and other social forces that are organised in those countries, and I think the best thing, in the case of Mexico and in the case of Venezuela, is for the US to stop intervening. --- end audio 3:38 --- ---------------------- ꕤ  ---------------------- US Supported Coups  (ie merely those mentioned in video) Latin America Guatemala, 1953 Dominican Republic Chile, 1973 Argentina Brazil Venezuela, 2002, Hugo Chavez Honduras, 2009 Paraguay, Fernando Lugo Europe Ukraine, 2014 OTHER (incl. list US coups)   Ecuadorian President Says The CIA Is Attempting To Overthrow His Government The CIA has a history of contributing to coups in Ecuador. Back in 1963, the CIA led a coup which deposed President Carlos Julio Arosemena because he criticized the United States and supported Fidel Castro’s revolution in Cuba. By Derrick Broze | March 25, 2015 SOURCE http://www.mintpressnews.com/ecuadorian-president-says-the-cia-is-attempting-to-overthrow-his-government/203701/ For Full Article (with links to further information, go to source) ꕤ

Julian Assange | Statement 20 December, 2012 | Christmas

Julian Assange December 20th, 2012 Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_Gy3UaHBXo&feature=youtu.be ---------------------- ꕤ ---------------------- Statement https://wikileaks.org/Statement-by-Julian-Assange-after.html Statement by Julian Assange after Six Months in Ecuadorian Embassy Thursday December 20th, 19:00 GMT (updated 21:00 GMT) (Checked to delivery - published at 21:00 GMT) Good evening London. What a sight for sore eyes. People ask what gives me hope. Well, the answer is right here. Six months ago – 185 days ago – I entered this building. It has become my home, my office and my refuge. Thanks to the principled stance of the Ecuadorian government and the support of its people, I am safe in this embassy to speak to you. And every single day outside, for 185 days, people like you have watched over this embassy – come rain, hail and shine. Every single day. I came here in summer. It is winter now. I have been sustained by your solidarity and I’m grateful for the efforts of people all around the world supporting the work of WikiLeaks, supporting freedom of speech, freedom of the press, essential elements in any democracy. While my freedom is limited, at least I am still able to communicate this Christmas, unlike the 232 journalists who are in jail tonight. Unlike Gottfrid Svartholm in Sweden tonight. Unlike Jeremy Hammond in New York tonight. Unlike Nabeel Rajab in Bahrain tonight. And unlike Bradley Manning, who turned 25 this week, a young man who has maintained his dignity after spending more than 10 per cent of his life in jail, without trial, some of that time in a cage, naked and without his glasses. And unlike so many others whose plights are linked to my own. I salute these brave men and women. And I salute journalists and publications that have covered what continues to happen to these people, and to journalists who continue publishing the truth in face of persecution, prosecution and threat – who take journalism and publishing seriously. Because it is from the revelation of truth that all else follows. Our buildings can only be as tall as their bricks are strong. Our civilization is only as strong as its ideas are true. When our buildings are erected by the corrupt, when their cement is cut with dirt, when pristine steel is replaced by scrap – our buildings are not safe to live in. And when our media is corrupt, when our academics are timid, when our history is filled with half- truths and lies – our civilization will never be just. It will never reach to the sky. Our societies are intellectual shanty towns. Our beliefs about the world and each other have been created by the same system that has lied us into repeated wars that have killed millions. You can’t build a skyscraper out of plasticine. And you can’t build a just civilization out of ignorance and lies. We have to educate each other. We have to celebrate those who reveal the truth and denounce those who poison our ability to comprehend the world that we live in. The quality of our discourse is the limit of our civilization. But this generation has come to its feet and is revolutionizing the way we see the world. For the first time in history the people who are affected by history are its creators. And for other journalists and publications – your work speaks for itself, and so do your war crimes. I salute those who recognize the freedom of the press and the public’s right to know – recognized in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, recognized in the First Amendment of the United States – we must recognize that these are in danger and need protection like never before. WikiLeaks is under a continuing Department of Justice investigation, and this fact has been recognized rightly by Ecuador and the governments of Latin America as one that materially endangers my life and my work. Asylum is not granted on a whim, but granted on facts. The U.S. investigation is referred to in testimony – under oath – in the U.S. courts, is admitted by the Department of Justice, and in the Washington Post just four days ago by the District Attorney of Virginia, as a fact. Its subpoenas are being litigated by our people in the U.S. courts. The Pentagon reissued its threats against me in September and claimed the very existence of WikiLeaks is an ongoing crime. My work will not be cowed. But while this immoral investigation continues, and while the Australian government will not defend the journalism and publishing of WikiLeaks, I must remain here. However, the door is open – and the door has always been open – for anyone who wishes to speak to me. Like you, I have not been charged with a crime. If you ever see spin that suggests otherwise, note this corruption of journalism and then go to justice4assange.com for the full facts. Tell the world the truth, and tell the world who lied to you. Despite the limitations, despite the extra-judicial banking blockade, which circles WikiLeaks like the Cuban embargo, despite an unprecedented criminal investigation and a campaign to damage and destroy my organization, 2012 has been a huge year. We have released nearly one million documents: Documents relating to the unfolding war in Syria. We have exposed the mass surveillance state in hundreds of documents from private intelligence companies. We have released information about the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo Bay and elsewhere – the symbol of the corruption of the rule of law in the West, and beyond. We’ve won against the immoral blockade in the courts and in the European Parliament. After a two-year fight, contributions to WikiLeaks have gone from being blockaded and tax-deductible nowhere to being tax-deductible across the entirety of the European Union and the United States. And last week information revealed by WikiLeaks was vital – and cited in the judgment – in determining what really happened to El-Masri, an innocent European kidnapped and tortured by the CIA. Next year will be equally busy. WikiLeaks has already over a million documents being prepared to be released, documents that affect every country in the world. Every country in this world. And in Australia an unelected Senator will be replaced by one that is elected.  [Bob Carr, Labor Party Foreign Minister & Senate fill-in for Senator Mark Arbib (2008-2012), US Embassy secret informant - see below.  Note also:  "2007 bureaucrat spin doctors in Canberra were "outed" for editing Wikipedia entries critical of their bosses." lol] In 2013, we continue to stand up to bullies. The Ecuadorian government and the governments of Latin America have shown how co-operating through shared values can embolden governments to stand up to coercion and support self-determination. Their governments threaten no one, attack no one, send drones at no one. But together they stand strong and independent. The tired calls of Washington powerbrokers for economic sanctions against Ecuador, simply for defending my rights, are misguided and wrong. President Correa rightly said, "Ecuador’s principles are not for sale." We must unite together to defend the courageous people of Ecuador, to defend them against intervention in their economy and interference in their elections next year. The power of people speaking up and resisting together terrifies corrupt and undemocratic power. So much so that ordinary people here in the West are now the enemy of governments, an enemy to be watched, an enemy to be controlled and to be impoverished. True democracy is not the White House. True democracy is not Canberra. True democracy is the resistance of people, armed with the truth, against lies, from Tahrir to right here in London. Every day, ordinary people teach us that democracy is free speech and dissent. For once we, the people, stop speaking out and stop dissenting, once we are distracted or pacified, once we turn away from each other, we are no longer free. For true democracy is the sum – is the sum – of our resistance. If you don’t speak up – if you give up what is uniquely yours as a human being: if you surrender your consciousness, your independence, your sense of what is right and what is wrong, in other words – perhaps without knowing it, you become passive and controlled, unable to defend yourselves and those you love. People often ask, "What can I do?" The answer is not so difficult. Learn how the world works. Challenge the statements and intentions of those who seek to control us behind a facade of democracy and monarchy. Unite in common purpose and common principle to design, build, document, finance and defend. Learn. Challenge. Act. Now. SOURCE https://wikileaks.org/Statement-by-Julian-Assange-after.html ---------------------- ꕤ ---------------------- Bob Carr Labor Party Australia Govt Minister for Foreign Affairs 2012 (Mar) - 2013 (Sep) Also Australian Senate Senator NSW (unelected) "In April 2013, Fairfax journalist Philip Dorling identified Carr from a searchable database of declassified US State Department diplomatic cables as having criticised the Whitlam Government and provided information on internal Labor Party politics during discussions with the American consul-general in Sydney during the early 1970s."  [Wikipedia] Bob Carr: Washington's man in Australia April 8, 2013 Philip Dorling http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/bob-carr-washingtons-man-in-australia-20130408-2hgut.html Mark Arbib, aka CIA Agent 007 December 9, 2010    http://www.smh.com.au/technology/technology-news/mark-arbib-aka-cia-agent-007-20101208-18q50.html Arbib revealed as secret US source December 9, 2010 Philip Dorling http://www.smh.com.au/national/arbib-revealed-as-secret-us-source-20101208-18prg.html

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Latin America - Bolivia, Evo Morales | Venezuela

Fight Imperialism with Unity, Says Morales Evo Morales speaks at the University of Panama as part of the People's Summit, an alternative summit running in parallel to the OAS' Summit of the Americas, April 4, 2015. EFE Published 10 April 2015 (10 hours 37 minutes ago) U.S. imperialism is being challenged by regional organizations like CELAC, according to Bolivia’s president. Bolivian President Evo Morales accused the United States Friday of conspiring to undermine democracy in Latin America, including in his home country. During a keynote address to the People's Summit in Panama, Morales said the United States has been one of the most serious threats to Bolovia's national security, and his own presidency. “Where there is a U.S. embassy, there are coups,” Morales said. The president alleged the U.S. government has been plotting to overthrow him for years. “The (Bolivian) right-wing, the opposition and the U.S. ambassador have always conspired … against the (revolutionary) process,” he said. However, he said regional initiatives aimed at promoting Latin American solidarity are the region's best defenses against U.S. imperialism. “I think actually the member countries of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), are a threat to the neoliberal, transnational (corporations) … but will never be a threat to U.S. security,” he said. The People's Summit   Morales is the only world leader to deliver a speech to this year's People's Summit, though Ecuador's President Rafael Correa has also stated he will attend the meeting. The summit brought together close to 2,000 representatives from social movements across the Americas to discuss issues ranging from U.S. sanctions on Venezuela to Puerto Rican independence. Organizers say the summit is a grassroots alternative to the Summit of the Americas, which is also taking place in Panama this week. In a statement, organizers said the summit is a forum for “the voice of our peoples, to highlight problems the other meeting (the Summit of the Americas) doesn't address.” On Thursday, the People's Summit led a rally through the streets of Panama City to condemn U.S. imperialism and express solidarity with Venezuela. http://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/Fight-Imperialism-with-Unity-Says-Morales-20150410-0011.html COMMENT US efforts to subvert governments in Latin American countries is nothing new, so it's probably safe to take Bolivia President Evo Morales at his word.  :) Nothing else to add.  Brain's fried.  Think it's sleep deprivation.  If I'm woken, I cannot go back to sleep ... and then I can't switch off to sleep at the other end of the day.  Switch is temporarily out of order.  :)

NOAM CHOMSKY - ARGENTINA & LATIN AMERICA

Buenos Aires cap. Argentina 2nd largest metro area in South America, after Greater São Paulo, Brasil 25°C, time: Sat 9:26 am NOAM CHOMSKY Professor Noam Chomsky talks to the Herald yesterday By Fermín Koop & Tomás Brockenshire Herald Staff Noam Chomsky says Argentina ‘has taken the lead in Latin America on human rights’ An intellectual with a rock star following, Noam Chomsky has taken time out from a speaking tour to return to Argentina after a 25-year absence, prompting barely-concealed enthusiasm from students, academics, political activists and fellow intellectuals. Speaking to the Herald before he gave his keynote address at the International Forum for Emancipation and Equality yesterday, Chomsky recognized Argentina’s regional leadership on human rights but questioned the lack of progress in the investigation into the bombings of the AMIA Jewish community centre in 1994 and the Israeli Embassy in 1992. http://www.buenosairesherald.com/article/184213/%E2%80%98the-state-has-been-incapable-of-investigating-amia-embassy-attacks%E2%80%99 ---------------------------------- Last 500 years LatAm under control + domination of external powers very small, extremely rich, mostly white elite Last 150 years, mostly USA domination & control Chomsky (mentioned re Cuba) Private capital in the US usually controls [foreign] policy. Only briefly skimmed a part of this.  Will have to come back to this when I'm more focused. Looks good reading.  Chomsky's always good value.

Will US Pick Off Latin American Opportunities following 2015 Americas Summit?

Obama says yes to Africa but no to Latin America? By ANDRES OPPENHEIMER Published: 12 August 2014 07:40 PM Updated: 12 August 2014 07:40 PM Watching President Barack Obama at his mega-summit with nearly 50 African heads of state in Washington, in which he announced $33 billion in investments and vowed to increase access to electricity to 60 million African households, many of us asked ourselves the same question: Why doesn’t he do the same with Latin America? The conventional wisdom among the thousands of dignitaries and businesspeople who converged on Washington for the Aug. 5 U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit was that the Obama administration organized the event in a desperate effort to catch up with China. In recent years, China has become Africa’s top business partner. Well, I’ve got news for U.S. policymakers: If Washington continues to pay little attention to Latin America, the same will happen there. It’s already happening in several countries in the region. Not only China, but also Russia and Japan — whose heads of state visited Latin America in recent weeks — have announced big plans to expand their presence in the region. The U.S. share of Latin America’s trade has dropped from 53 percent of the region’s worldwide trade in 2000 to 35 percent in 2013. Meanwhile, China’s share has soared from 1.9 percent to 12 percent over the same period, according to Inter-American Development Bank figures. What’s more, if current trends continue, by 2025 Latin America’s trade with the United States will have declined to 17 percent of its total trade, while Latin America’s trade with China will have reached 17 percent, says chief development bank trade economist Mauricio Moreira. And these figures include Mexico, a huge Latin American economy that does relatively little business with China. If you exclude Mexico, China’s presence in the region will dwarf the United States’ by 2025, the projections show. Yes, the United States holds a regular Summit of the Americas every three or four years, and the next one will be in Panama in 2015. But recent summits have been a flop, to a large extent because of Venezuela’s petro-dollar diplomacy, which virtually controls the votes of at least 16 Central American and Caribbean countries through its Petrocaribe-subsidized oil shipments, and because of Brazil’s reluctance to work for the success of any summit it does not lead. So what can the United States do? Here are three things: First, the Obama administration should show the region that it cares. Everybody understands that Secretary of State John Kerry is tied up with more urgent matters in the Middle East and Ukraine, but so far this year only two of his 21 trips abroad were to the region.  ['Cares' LMAO] And for last week’s second-term inauguration of Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, which was attended by the presidents of Mexico, Peru and several other countries, the White House sent U.S. State Department counselor Thomas Shannon, a highly respected diplomat but hardly a celebrity. Second, Obama could build his legacy in the region by proposing a new plan to deepen trade and investment relations with the 11 countries in the region with which the United States has free trade agreements, including Mexico, Colombia, Peru and Chile. The White House is negotiating free trade agreements mostly with Asian Pacific Rim countries and the 28-nation European Union. Kerry told me in an exclusive interview in December that he is exploring a regional trade initiative in the Americas, starting with deepening ties with Mexico and Canada, but that’s the last I heard of it.  [Bet that's the shale gas / oil ties.] Third, Obama should counter Petrocaribe with a U.S.-Caribe initiative, taking advantage of the fact that Venezuela has gone bankrupt and its oil facilities are crumbling, while the United States will soon become self-sufficient in energy, and may even become an oil exporter. Petro-diplomacy may be used by Washington, just as it has been used by Venezuela, some Washington insiders are thinking. [...]  [...]   The U.S. economy is recovering, and China’s is slowing down. It’s time for Obama to focus on Latin America, much as he did on Africa last week. http://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/latest-columns/20140812-obama-says-yes-to-africa-but-no-to-latin-america.ece

What makes the world go around?

1.  Trade Race.

2.  Arms Race.

It's just a relentless race to have more than the other guy:  more guns, more money, more investment, more regional control, more profits, more whatever.  It never lets up.

US (given huge shale boom) is probably focusing on securing energy export to Europe, which is probably a more stable trade opportunity than Latin America, I'm guessing.  US now has a huge energy supply it needs to find markets for and it wants to make the most of locking Russia out of the European energy market, I'm guessing.  Europe, on the other hand, has high energy needs. 

Anyway, that's what I'm thinking but I'm new to watching politics, so don't take that as gospel.

China's hardly doing a massive take-over in South America.  Its trade's grown, but it's nowhere near as high as US trade.

Trying to work out what petro-diplomacy is, I came across this:

Politics of Oil Nationalization

Several countries have nationalised foreign-run oil businesses, often failing to compensate investors. Enrique Mosconi, the director of the Argentine state owned oil company ... YPF, which was the first state owned oil company in the world ...

In 1953, Iran's Premier Mohammed Mossadegh was overthrown by a CIA/MI6 covert action known as Operation Ajax. The goal was to prevent Mossadegh from nationalizing the Anglo-Iranian oil company which later became British Petroleum.

Similarly Venezuela nationalized its oil industry in 1976. [wikipedia]

How evil is this?  They violated national sovereignty and changed the course of a nation's future -- for oil!

It gets worse.  The Shah was involved in helping foreigners profit.  The wikipedia on Operation Ajax is - here.

Anyway, don't exactly know what petro-diplomacy is, but the Op Ajax was an interesting aside.

Petrocaribe - wikipedia here - is a Venezuela and Caribbean countries alliance for purchase of oil from
Venezuela for 'preferrential payment' (whatever that is).

Found preference payment in relation to bankruptcy, but that's not it.  Couldn't be bothered looking any further.  Guessing that it has something to do with making payment to Venezuela a priority or something like that.

Venezuela's gone bankrupt, according to the article.  So how can that be?  (Should know this from prior look-ups, but I've got a shocking memory.  LOL)

At a quick glance, looks like Venezuela going bust is to do with 'pillaging' (ie social spending and SUBSIDISED PRICE selling, as well as no investment and low production) the oil companies - Economist - here.

Haven't checked to see what other oil producers there is in Latin America.  

So what's the US likely to do?  

Well, the summit in 2015 isn't a long way off.  The bet is that if the US can make a dollar in Latin America it will pursue that avenue as well.