EU Provides $500 Million To Buy Arms For Ukraine; Turkey Readies Closure Of Straits To Russian Navy

Update (1750ET): There's now an EU-wide consensus on supplying Ukraine with arms amid reports that large columns of ground and armored forces are moving closer to Kiev, and as fighting rages across other parts of Ukraine. "European Union member states on Sunday agreed to unblock 450 millions euros ($500 million) for members states to buy arms for Ukraine, the bloc's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said," the AFP reports.

"The measure is part of a wide-ranging package of support and sanctions agreed by the 27 EU states. Borrell said they also formally approved a move to ban any transactions with the Russian Central Bank." It comes as unconfirmed reports suggest Putin may be frustrated at the slower than expected progress of the Russian forces.

Also on Sunday for the first time Turkey signaled it is ready to block Russian naval access to the Black Sea…

"Turkey’s foreign minister said Sunday that the situation in Ukraine had become a war, a legal distinction that paves the way for Ankara to potentially ban Russian warships from entering the Black Sea through a strategic chokepoint," The Wall Street Journal reports. The terms of the 1936 Montreux Convention is now expected to be triggered. Speaking to CNN Turk Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said:

“We came to the conclusion that the situation in Ukraine has transformed into a war,” and this means “We will implement all articles of Montreux transparently.”

Last Thursday - which was the first day of the all-out Russian invasion, Ukraine's government urged Turkey to close the Bosphorus and Dardanelles Straits for all Russian warship passage.

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/ukraine-president-agrees-hold-talks-without-preconditions-russia-belarus-border

Removing Russia from swift will trigger the market to collapse - blamed on Putin

Pozsar Warns Of Another "Lehman Weekend" As Russia Sanctions May Trigger Central Bank Liquidity Flood

In a remarkable show of force and unity, western powers cast aside all their previous concerns about Russian energy supplies and uniliaterally announced the nuclear option of imposing sanctions on the Russian central bank coupled with targeted exclusions from SWIFT of key Russian banks.

*EU APPROVES BANNING ALL TRANSACTIONS WITH RUSSIAN CENTRAL BANK

The move has sparked a bank run in Russia, as locals scramble to pull out whatever hard currency they can get their hands on before it runs out, and is certain to trigger chaotic moves in FX and commodities when markets reopen in a few hours. Already some Russian banks are offering to exchange rubles for dollars at a rate of 171 rubles per dollar on Sunday, compared to the official closing price of 83 on Friday before the European/US announcement about targeting the Russian central bank. In other words we are looking at a 50%+ devaluation of the Ruble. Additionally, widespread announcements of divestments in Russian equities by the likes of BP pls and the Norwegian sovereign wealth fund mean that the Russian market will be a bloodbath on Monday.

As Bloomberg notes, commodities are heading for a manic start to the week as investors scramble to assess how the West’s latest sanctions on Russia will affect flows of energy, metals and crops.

The coming days are fraught with event risk for crude, even aside from the sanctions fallout. There’s a midweek meeting of OPEC+ on output; the Biden administration may tap stockpiles; and Iranian nuclear talks look to be nearing a conclusion. On top of that, American crude inventories at the key Cushing hubcould sink to the lowest since 2014 if there’s another modest draw.

Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs said that despite the rally in prices, it’s unlikely OPEC+ will choose to quicken the pace at which the alliance has been restoring supplies, citing Russia’s “essential role” in the grouping.

And while Europe's moment of unity is certainly inspiting, it doesn't answer the question just how the continent will replace the massive amount of energy that flow every single day via the countless Russian pipelines into Europe, which are now for most intents and purposes shut.

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/pozsar-warns-another-lehman-weekend-russia-sanctions-may-trigger-central-bank-liquidity

DOJ Arrests 3 Individuals on Terrorism Charges Likely Related to Patriot Front but Lets Others Go? More Proof This is Another Government Operation

After TGP reporting on another likely government-sponsored group – the Patriot Front – the DOJ stepped into action and arrested three young men for terrorist activities. These three were joined by others who were not arrested or indicted.

Four days ago we reported on three individuals arrested by the FBI who pleaded guilty to a plot to attack power grids in the US. The FBI shared their arrests in a press release.

In the court filing it is reported that there were a few others who participated in this plan to reportedly take down the US power grid [emphasis added]:

Specifics of the plan to attack power grids, however, were closely held and shared only with those members of the “Lights On” online chat group, which included COOK, FROST, SAWALL and a few others. The organizational structure of the group initially took on a cell structure, with a leader and cell members for each region of the United States where an attack was being planned. Initially, COOK was responsible for the Northeast, FROST was responsible for the Southwest, and SAWALL was responsible for the Midwest; two others, one of whom was a juvenile, were responsible for the Southeast and Northwest, respectively. Eventually, the reality of managing cells proved unrealistic and the group switched to one person attacking each targeted substation.

In addition, the filing shared this:

In furtherance of the conspiracy, FROST sought to provide several AR-47 rifles, which he had previously acquired and built himself with 80% receivers purchased online, to members of the conspiracy. SAWALL also discussed plans to assist others in obtaining weapons, to include providing financial support to FROST while he built additional rifles. During a visit to Columbus, Ohio in February 2020, FROST brought an AR-47 with no serial number, also known as a ghost gun, to COOK for use in carrying out their plan. FROST originally built the rifle in Texas, then traveled from Indiana to Columbus, Ohio to transfer it to COOK. COOK paid FROST several hundred dollars for the rifle, which was exchanged in the back of SAWALL’s truck. Later during the visit, FROST and COOK took the rifle to a shooting range to train; FROST taught COOK how to operate and shoot the rifle. Later in the investigation, the AR-47 rifle was seized from COOK during a law enforcement interaction in Tennessee.

Below is the court filing on the case.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2022/02/exclusive-doj-arrests-3-individuals-likely-related-patriot-front-others-go-proof-another-government-operation/

https://www.scribd.com/document/561574506/04-cook-pa-0-1#download&from_embed

D.C.’s Foreign Policy ‘Experts’ Now Demand ‘Regime Change’ for Russia.

Those supporting the establishment narratives in Eurasia are bolstering their demands for World War III.

A host of foreign policy “experts” are now explicitly calling for “regime change” in Russia following Vladimir Putin invading Ukraine.

Reminiscent of the establishment’s failed calls for regime change in countries like Afghanistan and Iraq, whose military conflicts cost countless American lives and resources, the sentiment appears to be at odds with the majority of the country. Nearly three-quarters of Americans oppose playing a major role in the unfolding conflict.

Benjamin Wittes, a Senior Fellow in Governance Studies at the Washington, D.C.-based Brookings Institution, epitomized the establishment’s ultimate policy goal for Russia in a recent tweet: “Regime change: Russia.”

While the post drew significant criticism from other Twitter users, forcing Wittes to issue a Tweet for clarification of his stance, other mouthpieces for the establishment foreign policy think tank community championed Wittes’ proposal.

“This has to be the policy now,” tweeted Dr. Alina Polyakova, formerly the Founding Director for Global Democracy and Emerging Technology at the Brookings Institution, in response. Polyakova is now the President and CEO of the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA), which has hosted events featuring leaders from George Soros’s Open Society Foundations.

Richard Haass, President of the Council on Foreign Relations, noted how “now the conversation has shifted to include the possibility of desired regime change in Russia” in a February 27th Tweet.

https://thenationalpulse.com/2022/02/27/foreign-policy-experts-now-back-regime-change/

Trump: Democrats Say Ukraine’s Borders Are Sacred While Destroying Our Own

At CPAC Saturday, Donald Trump pointed out the latest in a seemingly endless string of examples of Democrat hypocrisy: Democrats are wild with indignation over Vladimir Putin’s violation of Ukrainian sovereignty, while they’re overseeing the destruction of our own sovereignty by turning our Southern border into little more than a line on a piece of paper.

Trump declared: “What has happened in Ukraine is a catastrophic disaster. But it isn’t really that interesting that so many Democrat politicians in Washington, they seem to be rushing to microphones to declare that Ukraine’s borders are sacred. They want to say their borders are sacred, and we feel for Ukraine in so many ways, but Ukraine’s sovereignty must be defended at all costs, they say, even while they’re destroying our own borders and surrendering our own sovereignty. We have a border that’s a catastrophe. We have people coming into our country that we don’t want. They will not be good for our country.” They’ll be good for voting Democrat to keep their welfare gravy train going, and to the likes of Schumer, Pelosi, and Old Joe Biden, that’s all that matters.

Once again, Trump was right. Democrat leaders are actively and aggressively against protecting America’s borders or limiting or seriously vetting those who are streaming in. Instead, they’re always looking for ways to bring in more.

Breitbart reported Friday that “President Joe Biden’s pro-migration homeland security agency is quietly preparing to open the nation’s borders and jobs to economic migrants who claim to be stateless.” This step “comes amid a lobbying campaign by pro-migration groups to create a border doorway for people who claim to have no national home. The lobbying campaign is symbolized by United Stateless, which is funded by various pro-migration groups, including George Soros’s Open Society Foundations.” Of course.

Meanwhile, “House Democrats are working with a number of open borders groups, many financially linked to billionaire George Soros, in an effort to eliminate all monitoring and tracking of illegal aliens in the United States.” Who would possibly benefit from that? Employers who prefer to pay illegals a pittance under the table rather than pay Americans the minimum wage, and Democrats who gain new dependents upon the welfare system who will vote in favor of perpetuating their rather lucrative dependency.

As an alternative to this madness, Trump reminded his CPAC audience that “the most important duty of every elected lawmaker is to protect and defend America, and that begins with protecting and defending America’s borders.” He was, however, the first president in a very long time to have a steady and sober regard for that fact; even Ronald Reagan got the open-borders ball rolling by agreeing to an amnesty that rewarded a million aliens for entering the United States illegally. Old Joe Biden and his handlers not only do not believe that the president should protect America’s borders, but have worked and are working actively to destroy them.

https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/robert-spencer/2022/02/27/trump-democrats-say-ukraines-borders-are-sacred-while-destroying-our-own-n1562273