Ric’s grandpa looks great for 98 years old. 17
https://twitter.com/RichardGrenell/status/1520878384401633280?s=20&t=02tvaevYOQ2TD0dYjDoCUQ
I was told by a lefty friend, that many
Leftists are watching Tucker. Is that why they have to take him down and will fail?
https://twitter.com/RichardGrenell/status/1520863737573306368?s=20&t=02tvaevYOQ2TD0dYjDoCUQ
https://twitter.com/RichardGrenell/status/1520767839837114369?s=20&t=02tvaevYOQ2TD0dYjDoCUQ
Was Merkel supposed to initiate the 16 year plan?
https://twitter.com/RichardGrenell/status/1520763207412985856?s=20&t=02tvaevYOQ2TD0dYjDoCUQ
I like Devin, he worked his ass off for truth to come out
Saving that. TY
1 May, 2022 19:54
51 years of RFE/RL: How the CIA-founded American state run media outlet survived the Soviet collapse to fight Cold War 2.0
Originally established as an anti-Bolshevik endeavor, RFE/RL has thrived as US-Russia relations have nose-dived
The first of May marks the 51st anniversary of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (hereinafter “RFE/RL”, although this didn't become the official name until 1976) – radio stations which broadcast into Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union, respectively. As detailed in an internal CIA document from 1951 titled “Radio Aims and Objectives,” RFE/RL was to be operated by refugees or exiles from the various Socialist Bloc countries to broadcast information intended to encourage “hatred against the regime(s)” and to increase the “will to resist the regime(s).” In other words, this project had an explicit function to remove governments unfavorable to Washington.
Undoubtedly, May 1 was chosen as the launch of this project as it coincided with International Workers’ Day, one of the most important holidays in the Socialist Bloc.
From its inception until 1972, it was the CIA which funded RFE/RL, though it did so covertly without congressional knowledge or authorization. And it was CIA Director Allen Dulles – the mastermind behind the overthrow of democratic governments in countries such as Iran (1953) and Guatemala (1954) – who greenlit the secret financing of RFE/RL in the hope that it would contribute to the overthrow of communism in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union.
Ironically, even as the CIA was backing this project, it was helping to restore fascist, military rule to Greece – which it preferred to a Greek communist government. The left-wingers had great political stature among the electorate because of their valiant fight against the Nazis.
The memories of this betrayal by the West in Greece were awakened recently when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky appeared by video before the Greek parliament alongside a neo-Nazi Azov fighter, causing some of the members to get up and leave in protest.
The US and its CIA made similar choices in countries such as Indonesia, and later Chile and Argentina, opting to support ultra-right-wing dictatorships in lieu of socialist, albeit democratic, governments.
According to Cord Meyer, who took charge of the CIA’s relationship with Radio Liberty in 1954 and led these operations for many years, “[t]he CIA maintained control over [radio] content by formulating general policy guidelines, which were supplemented by daily meetings to determine the handling of specific news.” Meyer insists, however, that this control did not interfere with the journalistic integrity of the radio programs.
In addition, while Meyer insists that there were no actual spies operating within the radio stations, the radio personnel nevertheless kept detailed accounts of what they observed in the various countries in which they operated; in other words, they did provide intelligence for the CIA. And even after Congress ended CIA funding of RFE/RL in 1972 – the money would come directly from Congress from then on – its primary purpose remained to broadcast anti-communist programs into the East Bloc, at least until the communist governments in Eastern Europe and then the Soviet Union collapsed.
Of course, RFE/RL openly takes credit for helping to bring about this ultimate collapse, believing that its influence whittled away at the support of the various communist governments. It has found support for this claim from the likes of Vaclav Havel (who invited RFE/RL to move from its original headquarters in Munich, Germany to Prague after the collapse of the East Bloc) and Boris Yeltsin.
I recall quite vividly, as someone who grew up in the 1970s and 1980s, the incessant complaints that the Soviet Union would often jam the signals of Radio Liberty – evidence, we were told, that Moscow simply could not handle the truth. I think of this now as the outlet I am writing this article for – RT, of course a Russian-based news outlet – is being suppressed in the US or outrightly banned in the EU.
You may ask what this says about the EU and the US today.
RFE/RL would seem to be a relic of the bygone era of the Cold War when the US and the Soviet Union were vying for the hearts and minds of the world. Not only is the Cold War over, but it seems that most mainstream outlets – such as Fox, CNN and MSNBC – serve the same role as RFE/RL itself. And yet, RFE/RL continues to exist to this day, and indeed has received new life during the current crisis in Ukraine – a flashpoint which some observe as the beginning of a new Cold War. …
That Is why the Cold War never died…..continued
https://www.rt.com/news/554746-radio-liberty-anniversary-cold-war/
1 May, 2022 20:30
Ukraine confirms Mariupol evacuation
Some 100 people have left a steel plant in the city of Mariupol, Kiev has announced
Some 100 people have left the sprawling Azovstal steel plant in the Black Sea port city of Mariupol and are heading to territory controlled by Ukrainian forces, President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed in a Twitter post on Sunday. The plant remains the last pocket of Kiev's resistance in the city otherwise controlled by Russian forces and the militias of the Donbass republics.
Ukrainian officials are still working together with UN representatives on evacuating civilians from the area, Zelensky outlined, adding that the evacuees will be transferred to the Ukrainian city of Zaporozhye on Monday.
A spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Saviano Abreu, has also confirmed to Reuters that the evacuation operation began on April 29 and is being coordinated by the International Committee of the Red Cross, as well as by Russia and Ukraine.
Ukraine’s top negotiator at the talks with Moscow, David Arakhamia, has called the evacuation “the most difficult operation” since the start of the conflict. He has also said that “more than 100 Ukrainians, including children, women and the elderly, are finally safe.” The politician added, though, that “a lot of people” still remain at the steel plant and need evacuation.
Earlier on Sunday, the Russian Defense Ministry said that some 80 civilians have left the territory of the plant. The Russian forces and the Donbass republics’ militias have opened a humanitarian corridor for civilians and have maintained a ceasefire in the area.
According to Russian media, all those evacuated were transported to the village of Bezymennoe, which is controlled by the Donbass militias, and were provided with shelter, food and medical assistance. Those civilians who wished to travel further to Ukrainian-controlled areas were handed over to UN and Red Cross representatives, the media added.
The Azovstal steel plant still houses hundreds of Ukrainian soldiers, including fighters from the notorious neo-Nazi Azov regiment. Built in Soviet times, the facility has a massive network of underground tunnels, which has been turned into a fortress by the Ukrainian forces.
Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier called off an assault on the plant and instead urged those entrenched within its premises to surrender. Russia would guarantee anyone who lays down arms preservation of life and “decent treatment under all international norms,” the president said last week.
The Ukrainian forces and the Azov militants demanded instead that they be allowed to leave with the assistance of a “third party” while keeping their personal weapons. On Friday, one of the Ukrainian commanders at the plant called on Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to organize an “extraction operation” for him and his men, while stating that there are civilians as well as hundreds of injured soldiers hiding at the plant.
Russia previously sought to create humanitarian corridors for those holed up at the facility, but those attempts failed. Kiev and Moscow have accused each other of disrupting the evacuation of civilians said to be trapped together with the Ukrainian fighters.
https://www.rt.com/russia/554830-ukraine-un-evacuation-azovstal-mariupol/
1 May, 2022 20:35
Turkey promises to back NATO in case of ‘slightest attack’
Foreign MinisterMevlutCavusoglu said that his country would respond if a NATO member came under attack
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu claimed on Sunday that NATO has “no intention” of intervening in the Ukraine-Russia conflict, but vowed that his country would respond to any attack on a NATO ally. Throughout the conflict, Turkey has attempted to balance its relationship with both the alliance and Russia.
“NATO's position is clear. The alliance has no intention of interfering in the Ukrainian conflict," Cavusoglu told reporters on Sunday after a trip to Latin America.
However, Turkey’s top diplomat added that "in the event of the slightest attack on any ally, we will respond adequately.”
NATO is not a direct participant in the Ukraine conflict, but its member states have shipped weapons and ammunition to Volodymyr Zelensky’s government, the US has shared intelligence with Kiev, and Ukrainian troops are being trained on NATO bases in Europe.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has accused NATO of “essentially going to war with Russia through a proxy and arming that proxy,” while Russian President Vladimir Putin warned outside players against intervening in the conflict last week, threatening to unleash a “swift, lightning-fast” response should Russia’s security be put at risk.
Although a NATO member, Turkey fields some Russian weapons systems, and its insistence on purchasing the Russian-made S-400 air defense system saw it booted from the US’ F-35 jet fighter program in 2019.
Turkey has sought to maintain relations with both the alliance and Moscow since Russia’s operation in Ukraine began in February. It has sold its domestically-produced Bayraktar drones to Ukraine, but has refused to impose sanctions on Moscow. Meanwhile, Istanbul has hosted peace talks between Ukrainian and Russian negotiators, and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has offered to host talks between Putin and Zelensky.
Such talks have not yet materialized, and in an interview late last month with CNN Turk, Cavusoglu said that “there are countries within NATO that want the war to continue,” in order to make Russia “weaker.” He did not, however, name any of those states.
The diplomat said that several South American leaders have offered to mediate between Russia and Ukraine, including Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who reportedly offered to visit Moscow for talks.
"Venezuela has good relations with Russia. Both Brazil and Venezuela have said that the war should be stopped,” Cavusoglu explained. “We said we would like to contribute to those efforts.”
https://www.rt.com/news/554831-turkey-nato-response-russia/
1 May, 2022 17:42
10 EU countries quietly buying gas with rubles, Hungary says
European leaders won’t admit they’re going along with Russia’s deal, government official Gergely Gulyas said
While multiple European leaders have publicly proclaimed they won’t buy Russian gas in rubles as Russian President Vladimir Putin has demanded, 10 EU countries are technically going along with Putin’s plan, Hungarian official Gergely Gulyas told public radio on Sunday. According to Gulyas, these countries’ leaders aren’t admitting this in order to be seen as “being a good European.”
Gulyas said that Hungary has opened a euro account with Russia’s Gazprombank, which then converts payments into rubles before transferring them to suppliers in Russia. This system allows European buyers to comply with Putin’s demand, made in late March, that “unfriendly” countries switch to Russia’s national currency to buy its natural gas.
“There are nine other countries using the same payment scheme, but because today the idea of being a good European also means that the leaders of those countries are not honest when speaking either in the international arena or to their own people, the other nine countries won’t say that they are doing the same thing,” said Gulyas, who serves as Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s chief of staff.
“There should be no doubt in anyone’s mind that countries importing raw materials from Russia use exactly the same method to pay for Russian gas,” he added.
It is unclear which EU countries Guylas was referring to. Russian energy giant Gazprom has already shut off supplies to Poland and Bulgaria after both refused to pay in rubles, but a Bloomberg report last week stated, as Gulyas did, that 10 of the bloc’s member states have already set up accounts with Gazprombank, and four have actually paid for Russian gas using this mechanism.
Hungary depends on Russia for all of its gas imports, and has therefore opposed EU sanctions on this critical commodity. Gulyas reiterated this commitment to Russian energy and opposition to Brussels’ sanctions regime on Sunday.
“We mustn’t adopt sanctions with which we primarily penalize ourselves instead of those we want to sanction,” he said, referring to soaring energy costs throughout Europe. While the government in Budapest has condemned Russia’s military operation in Ukraine, Guylas said that it would “continue to buy our energy at the cheapest possible price” to offset any costs on the Hungarian people.
(Meanwhile EU countries will mandate their citizens to suffer for the decisions of their leadership. Bizarro really)
https://www.rt.com/business/554827-hungary-eu-gas-rubles/
1 May, 2022 19:07
Lawmaker seeks to bring US troops to Ukraine
Adam Kinzinger’s resolution would allow President Biden to deploy American forces if Russia uses weapons of mass destruction
(Kinzinger got recognition, now he’s one happy warmonger. The only thing he’s sad about is his picture is not used in this article)
Rep. Adam Kinzinger, a Republican from Illinois, announced on Sunday that he will introduce a resolution authorizing the use of military force should Russia deploy “chemical, biological and/or nuclear weapons” in Ukraine. Kinzinger has continuously pushed for US involvement in the ongoing conflict, and previously backed measures that critics and President Biden said would lead to a “third world war.”
Kinzinger’s resolution would authorize the president to use the American military to “assist in defending and restoring the territorial integrity of Ukraine,” in response to a hypothetical Russian use of chemical, biological or nuclear weapons on Ukrainian soil.
The resolution would give the president sole authority to determine whether such aggression by Russia had actually taken place, without requiring any international investigation. Accordingly, it could incentivize Ukrainian forces to stage such an attack in the hopes of drawing the US into the conflict, as commanders in Moscow have accused Kiev of planning.
As an Authorization for the Use of Military Force, or AUMF, the resolution would function like the post-9/11 AUMF that has been renewed every year since 2001. This authorization has given US presidents legal clearance to attack more than a dozen countries since 9/11, including Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Somalia and Yemen, without a formal declaration of war.
“As the President of the United States has said, Putin must be stopped,” read a statement from Kinzinger’s office. “Accordingly, the Commander in Chief to the world’s greatest military should have the authority and means to take the necessary actions to do so.”
Kinzinger, a Republican who aligns with Democrats on most issues, has publicly called for US involvement in the conflict already. Within a day of Russian forces entering Ukraine in February, Kinzinger was demanding that NATO enforce a ‘no-fly zone’ over the country, a move that would see the US-led military alliance commit to shooting down Russian aircraft and striking Russian air defense systems.
While Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has also requested such a move, Biden has refused, saying that it would trigger a “third world war” with Russia. Kinzinger has also pressured the Biden administration to send fighter jets donated by Poland into Ukraine, which the administration has refused. Citing the risks involved in having US pilots deliver warplanes into an active conflict zone, Biden again said that he wished to avoid “World War III.”
It is currently unclear if and when Kinzinger’s resolution will be brought to a vote. Biden himself has said that the US “would respond” to any use of weapons of mass destruction by Russian forces in Ukraine, but has avoided drawing any binding ‘red lines’. Instead, the US has continued to ship weapons to Ukraine and is currently training Ukrainian soldiers on some of these weapons systems in Germany.
https://www.rt.com/news/554828-kinzinger-us-troops-ukraine/
1 May, 2022 16:27
Violent May Day clashes in Paris(VIDEOS)
Black-clad anarchists clashed with police and smashed storefronts as France’s annual day of left-wing protest turned violent
Thousands of protesters packed the streets of Paris on Sunday to mark May Day, an annual day of demonstration by socialists and trade unions. With masked ‘black bloc’ anarchists among the crowd, violence and vandalism soon followed.
At least 5,000 police officers were deployed to the streets of the French capital, backed up by armored cars and water cannons. This year’s protests came a week after French President Emmanuel Macron was re-elected, and with around 250 demonstrations planned in the city alone, trade union boss Philippe Martinez called on citizens to “take to the streets” and make the protests “as massive as possible.”
Leftist leader Jean-Luc Melenchon called on his followers to oppose Macron’s planned pension reforms, and marchers held banners decrying the centrist president’s plans to raise the retirement age to 65.
Amid crowds of peaceful marchers, groups dressed in black and wearing masks soon scuffled with police. Tear gas was fired and video footage showed officers tackling suspects to the ground, while another clip showed a group of heavily-armored officers charging protesters who pelted them with projectiles.
Rioters smashed a McDonald’s, before police arrived to protect the restaurant, and other businesses – including banks, insurance firms, and at least one real estate office – were also targeted.
Protesters piled building materials and trash in the streets, before setting these barricades alight. Some of the fires sent choking clouds of black smoke into the air.
It is unclear how many people have been arrested thus far. Protests have also taken place in a number of French cities, including Lille, Nantes, Toulouse, and Marseille.
https://www.rt.com/news/554823-paris-may-day-protests-violence/