10 Jun, 2024 12:07

Pro-war EU politicians ‘punished’ in elections – Snowden

The American whistleblower has said the results of the bloc’s parliamentary elections are a bad sign for US President Joe Biden

The comments come as the results of EU parliamentary elections which wrapped up on Sunday, reveal a significant voter swing to right-wing and conservative parties, particularly in France and Germany, where they are projected to beat out the ruling coalitions of President Emmanuel Macron and Chancellor Olaf Scholz, respectively.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Snowden argued that the defeat of pro-war politicians in the elections is “not a good sign for [US President Joe] Biden,” suggesting that Washington is the one that decides when the conflicts begin and end.

Over the weekend, hundreds of millions of people are estimated to have taken part in the parliamentary elections across 27 EU member states. According to preliminary results,support for conservative and right-wing parties has grown significantly, as people are increasingly opposed to the bloc’s policies, especially those regardingimmigration, theclimate,militarysupport for Ukraine, andsanctionson Russia.

In France, the right-wing National Rally, previously led byMarine Le Pen, received more than 30%of the vote, whileMacron’s Renaissance partyonly managed around15%, prompting the French leader to dissolve the National Assembly and call a snap general election.

In Germany,Scholz’sruling Social Democrats received their worst results in decades with just14% of the vote, according to projections, while the right-wing Alternative for Germany(AfD) is expected to finish in second place with an estimated 15%. The center-right CDU-CSU alliance is projected to win around 30% of the vote.

Similar results were seen for conservative parties in other EU states as well, includingBelgium, the Netherlands, and Italy.

European Commission PresidentUrsula von der Leyenhas vowed that the bloc willcontinue on a “pro-Ukraine path,” as her centrist faction is projected to remain the largest group in the European Parliament with an estimated 26% of the seats.

https://www.rt.com/news/599078-snowden-eu-politicians-punished/

10 Jun, 2024 09:41

Ukrainian officials stole $490 million meant for military – MP

Criminal proceedings are underway in relation to dozens of cases of alleged embezzlement, according to politician Mikhail Bondar

Nearly $500 million given to Kiev for the construction of defensive fortifications to repel Russia’s advance has been embezzled or stolen, media reported on Sunday, citing Mikhail Bondar, a member of the Ukrainian parliament.

Ukrainian law enforcement authorities have launched around 30 criminal proceedingslinked to the embezzlement of 20 billion hryvnias ($491 million), Bondar told lawmakers at a closed-door session of the parliamentary investigative commission on fortifications, according to multiple media reports. In the absence of defensive fortifications, Russian forces have made rapid advances in the country.

“Members of the commission fromServants of the People [Ukraine’s ruling party], when they heard such figures,immediately tried to defend the managers of the funds,” Bondar said. However, he claimed that the “lion’s share” of the funds had been disbursed through Ukraine’s military and civil authorities, which the MP described as the “vertical of the president.”

Ukrainian lawmakers have urged the defense ministry, as well as local military authorities, to provide information on the use of budget funds for the construction of defenses.

Last month, Ukrainian media reported that military and civilian authorities in Kharkov Regionhad paid millions of dollars to fake companiesfor the supply of non-existent construction materials to build fortifications.

According to Ukrainian anti-corruption activists,Kharkov Region authorities alone embezzled or stole 7 billion hryvnias($176.5 million) that they had been given to build fortifications along the border. The lack of defenses has resulted in Russian troops overrunning a dozen settlements in quick succession.

For the supply of wood, the Kharkov Department of Housing and Communal Services and OVA Regional Military Administrationsigned contracts worth 270 million hryvnias ($6.8 million)with five companies that had been set up immediately after the contracts were announced.No bidding process took place, and at least two of these companies were owned by the same person, an anti-corruption report claimed.

In May, Russia launched a large-scale offensive on Kharkov Region, capturing multiple towns and villages. Some Ukrainian troops, including Denis Yaroslavsky, a commander active in the area, blamed their superiors for putting up inadequate defenses, claiming they may have embezzled money intended for their construction.

For months, Kharkov Region has been a source of Ukrainian cross-border attacks on Russia’s Belgorod Region. Its proximity has allowed Ukrainian troops to regularly shell the Russian city with multiple rocket launch systems.

In March, Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested that Moscow could be forced to “create a cordon sanitaire” in Kiev-controlled territories to prevent attacks on Russian border regions.

https://www.rt.com/russia/599073-ukraine-fortification-construction-embezzlement/

(No wonder Zelensky and team want the US to stop talking about the corruption in Ukraine and condemning the Ambassador Brink for bringing it up again.)

10 Jun, 2024 10:13

Ukrainian troops selling fuel on black market – media

In some cases, up to 50% of gasoline allocated by Kiev ends up in private hands, Strana.ua has reported

TheUkrainian military is plagued by rampant fuel theft, with the authorities in Kiev prosecuting corruption mostly among the lower ranks, the outlet Strana.ua reported on Sunday, citing sources.

The website’s sources in the military called it one of the“most acute” and pervasive problems in the army, with an unnamed company commander saying that fuel has become a sort of “currency” on the front line.

According to the officer, he was told shortly after his appointment that one of his duties was to keep an “emergency supply” of fuel for his superiors, a practice he claimed was extremely popular in other units.“If you refuse to drain fuel for your superiors, you will fall out of grace, with all the ensuing consequences. The worst thing is that in case of an inspection… you will be made a scapegoat,” the source said.

Another Strana.ua source in the military said the corruption scheme is based on thefact that it is impossible to accurately count the amount of fuel used on the battlefield. Mid-level Ukrainian commanders are well aware of this, and “control the process of ‘combat fuel losses’ – or, to put it simply, theft,” he claimed.

The “saved-up” fuel – which at times reaches50% of the total volume– is thentransported to warehouses of trusted entrepreneurs, with thespoils divided between the businesspeople and Ukrainian officers, the source added.

Strana.ua also reported that there have been dozens of court cases related to alleged fuel theft, but said most of them involved junior commanders. However, one of the cases targeted thehead of a military recruitmentoffice and his accomplices, who allegedlystole five tons of diesel fuel.

Widespread graft and embezzlement have long plagued Ukraine, which was famously dubbed “the most corrupt nation in Europe” by The Guardian back in 2017. The conflict with Russia hasmade the problem even more prominent, with Ukraine’s Defense Ministry rocked by several high-profile military procurement scandals in recent months.

The problem has worried the US, Kiev’s key backer, with a Pentagon report in May noting that Ukraine’s “ongoing war with Russia hascreated new opportunitiesforcorruption, includingbribes, kickbacks, andinflated procurement costswithin the Ministry of Defense,particularly for procurements of lethal items.” Washington also highlighted corruption risks in the Ukrainian parliament and other parts of the government, noting that low salaries contribute to graft.

https://www.rt.com/russia/599074-ukraine-corruption-fuel-theft/

(As Lindsey Graham says, Ukraine is a Gold Mine.)

I'm reading/watching Sundance's article on Kennedy interviewing Wray, of Epstein High profile clients, (I'll post his article later), but Sundance brought this up what Techno Fog had found, see the attached (4 parts), just in case Anons have never seen this:

"The action of the FBI in several “sex case” instances, leads me to believe there is a strong operational element within their silo that directly links to Jeffrey Epstein. Many of you may be aware that prior to the Epstein case getting massive publicity, he was in a long-time collaborative relationship with the FBI.The FBI has admitted in court documents that Epstein was a source, and the relationship appears to have gone much deeper than just source level. Techno Fog has deep dives on this aspect specifically {SEE HERE}."

https://technofog.substack.com/p/confirmed-jeffrey-epsteins-history

https://theconservativetreehouse.com/blog/2024/06/08/senator-kennedy-asks-some-uncomfortable-questions-to-fbi-director-chris-wray/

>>21000175

Senator Kennedy Asks Some Uncomfortable Questions to FBI Director Chris Wray

June 8, 2024 | Sundance1/12

From the outset, let me say in advance that I do not believe the current Director of the FBI has any clue what happens inside the modern FBI silo. It’s not that Chris Wray is not contributing to the corruption, his willful blindness guarantees that he is; the bigger issue is more about what the purpose and intent of the organization is…. THAT IS WHERE you will find my attention piqued.

I do not believe the popular assumption that the FBI as an institution is part of a domestic law enforcement operation. Those days are over. I genuinely believe, like most modern criminal enterprises, specifically including drug cartel operations (not coincidentally), what we see about the FBI is the false front. {GO DEEP} I suspect behind the facade and deep inside the FBI silo operation, is something else entirely.

The action of the FBI in several “sex case” instances, leads me to believe there is a strong operational element within their silo that directly links to Jeffrey Epstein. Many of you may be aware that prior to the Epstein case getting massive publicity, he was in a long-time collaborative relationship with the FBI.

The FBI has admitted in court documents that Epstein was a source, and the relationship appears to have gone much deeper than just source level. Techno Fog has deep dives on this aspect specifically {SEE HERE}.

Based on the conduct of the FBI, as an institution, I am increasingly convinced the DOJ/FBI (likely CIA, DoD and DoS) used Jeffrey Epstein as part of their intelligence gathering operation. In essence,Epstein carried out the indecent activity that ensnared FBI targets; this is the collaboration.

Whether the IC target was determined prior to the operation, then instructions given to Epstein; or whether Epstein’s pre-existing files, recordings, and potential blackmail exploits were used as part of the IC target mission later on, after a target appeared on the IC radar, is unknown. But using Epstein as part of what they would call National Security Operations would contextualize the term “collaboration,” and simultaneously explain every weird element which has never seemed possible to reconcile.

Against that context, watch this prompted line of questions.

WATCH: https://youtu.be/-j6Y1jnVR8E

Again, FBI Director Chris Wray doesn’t need to be a participating member of the FBI operational process in order to be FBI Director.

One of the more important aspects of understanding how the DC silos work, is to comprehend that they operate regardless of who is at the top of the silo.

Again, how do 40 career FBI agents work on the Trump-Russia collusion investigation, including the Weissmann/Mueller 2-year coverup operation, without a single FBI agent, member or employee saying the investigation is nonsense. If our historic reference point for the FBI operation is accurate, how was that even possible? The short answer, that reconciles all of it, is to accept it was not possible. Our prior reference point was fundamentally wrong. {GO DEEP}

Jeffrey Epstein was not an FBI “informant.” Jeffrey Epstein was an FBI “asset.”Epstein carried out Intelligence Community operations.

https://theconservativetreehouse.com/blog/2024/06/08/senator-kennedy-asks-some-uncomfortable-questions-to-fbi-director-chris-wray/

https://youtu.be/-j6Y1jnVR8E

>>21000199

2/2

The U.S. Dept of Justice and FBI are political institutions that have abandoned their originating mission in order to become the domestic equivalent of the Soviet-era FSB.

Their joint targeting mechanisms have been redesigned to support the interests of Intelligence Community operations.The IC radar sweeps off-shore and on-shorewith the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the DNI silo, maintaining the pivot point.

It was in June 2022, when Senator Chuck Grassley sent a letter [pdf HERE] to Attorney General Merrick Garland and FBI Director Chris Wray, notifying them of whistleblower allegations from within the FBI that senior leadership in both Main Justice and FBI are involved in a coordinated effort to cover up criminal activity related to Hunter Biden.

The whistleblower allegations, in combination with the documented history of DOJ and FBI misconduct, culminate in Senator Grassley stating:

“If these allegations are true and accurate, the Justice Department and FBI are – and have been – institutionally corrupted to their very core to the point in which the United States Congress and the American people will have no confidencein the equal application of the law. Attorney General Garland and Director Wray, simply put, based on the allegations that I’ve received from numerous whistleblowers, you have systemic and existential problems within your agencies.” (LINK)

Grassley was clarifying what has been visible for years, if we just stop pretending.

https://theconservativetreehouse.com/blog/2024/06/08/senator-kennedy-asks-some-uncomfortable-questions-to-fbi-director-chris-wray/

https://youtu.be/-j6Y1jnVR8E

Look at the FBI in the background, especially their eyes, it looks like they have Wray under observation or worse.

10 Jun, 2024 15:41

US considering unilateral deal with Hamas – media

The agreement could free American hostages believed to be held in Gaza

Officials in Washington could strike a deal with Hamas militants to secure the release of American hostages in Gaza, NBC reported on Monday, citing people close to the discussions.Five US nationals are understood to be held in Gaza, along with the bodies of three others believed to have been killedduring Hamas’ attack on Israel last October.

According to the report, if ceasefire talks involving Israel fail, the US would seek to clinch a unilateral agreement with the group without the participation of Israeli authorities. Instead, it would be brokered by Qatar.

NBC sources did not elaborate on what the US might promise Hamas in exchange for freeing the hostages. They noted, however, that the militants may welcome an opportunity to strike a unilateral agreement with Washington so as to put pressure on its relations with Israel, and possibly force Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree to Hamas’ current version of the ceasefire proposal.

Hamas abducted around 250 hostages during its October 7 attack on Israel, which started the current war. Around half of the captives were traded for Palestinian prisoners during a week-long ceasefire in November, and seven more have been rescued during raids by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The latest rescue mission took place last week in Nuseirat in central Gaza, resulting in the release of four captives, including Russian citizen Andrey Kozlov.

IDF spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said on Saturday that some 120 hostages were still being held by Hamas, with no clear information on whether all of them are still alive.

Netanyahu has been facing intense criticism for his failure to free the hostages, with families of the captives having staged mass protests calling for government action. The Israeli prime minister has refused to strike an agreement with Hamas with a view to securing the release of the captives, insisting that all of the militants should be eliminated. Hamas, in turn, has been demanding a lasting ceasefire and a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

In late May, US President Joe Biden proposed a Gaza peace proposal, which envisaged the release of all remaining hostages in return for Israel accepting first a six-week truce with Hamas, and then a permanent ceasefire and eventual withdrawal of its forces from Gaza. However, Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh signaled last week that the group was not happy with the phased nature of the plan. Netanyahu also reportedly rejected the proposal, saying there would be no permanent ceasefire until Hamas is destroyed.

https://www.rt.com/news/599087-us-gaza-hostages-hamas/

Elliott takes $1.9 billion stake in Southwest Airlines, seeks to oust CEO and chairMON, JUN 10 20249:19 AM 2 HRS AGO

POINTS

• Activist Elliott Management has a $1.9 billion stake in Southwest Airlines and plans to push for leadership changes at the struggling company.

• The stake makes Elliott one of Southwest’s largest shareholders.

• Southwest has struggled with challenges including Boeing’s 737 Max delivery delays.

Activist hedge fund Elliott Management has amassed a $1.9 billion stake in Southwest Airlines and plans to push for leadership changes at the airline that has lagged big rivals.Elliott is seeking to replace Southwest CEO Bob Jordan and Chairman Gary Kelly with outside candidates, the activist said in a letter and presentation Monday. Elliott believes Southwest has fallen from a “best-in-class” airline to one of the biggest laggards, according to the presentation detailing its case for change.

The size of Elliott’s stake makes the activist one of Southwest’s largest shareholders, according to FactSet. Elliott said it intends to “pursue all available pathways to deliver the leadership changes” the fund believes Southwest needs.The firm wants the airline to announce a CEO and chair transition with “immediate” effect, Elliott said in its presentation. Jordan and Kelly have “presided over a period of stunning underperformance at” Southwest, Elliott said. Both executives started their Southwest careers in the 1980s. The airline industry usually promotes leaders from within, seeking the technical expertise needed to run the highly regulated and complex business.

Elliott in its presentation highlighted COO Andrew Watterson as the only member of Southwest’s executive team that had experience at another airline. Southwest said in a statement that its board “is confident in our CEO and management’s ability to execute against the company’s strategic plan to drive long-term value for all shareholders, safely and reliably serve our customers and deliver on our commitments to all of our stakeholders.”

The carrier said Elliott first contacted it on Sunday and it is keeping an “open dialogue with our shareholders and value their perspectives related to enhancing shareholder value.” Southwest shares are down by more than 50% as of Friday’s close from three years ago, when travel demand, led by domestic trips, was starting to come back. In contrast, Delta Air Lines shares are up around 10% over that period and United Airlines shares are down about 7%. Shares of Southwest were up 8% in early-afternoon trading Monday. The company had a market capitalization of $16.6 billion as of Friday’s close.

Southwest grew from a small Texas carrier more than 50 years ago into a massive domestic airline that carries more travelers within the country than any other. But the carrier has long stuck to a conservative business model, using one kind of plane, offering one class of service and not charging for checked bags, while rivals continued to hike their fees and more customers appear willing to pay up for pricier and spacious seats.

Elliott dismissed Southwest’s upgrades like bigger overhead bins, better Wi-Fi and in-seat power as signs the airline’s leadership is “focused on incrementalism rather than an unbiased evaluation of all available opportunities.” Southwest’s leaders have said they are looking for new ways to drum up revenue to better compete with rivals that offer travelers more perks and products.

Jordan, who succeeded Kelly as CEO in February 2022, told CNBC in April that the carrier is considering ditching its single class of airplane seating and longtime boarding method. “They missed those opportunities to give customers the option to spend more money with the airline,” said Henry Harteveldt, a former airline executive and founder of Atmosphere Research Group. “A good retailer is always going to find ways to sell its customers more products.”

Elliott said it spoke with numerous former Southwest employees during an 18-month research period, according to a presentation. The activist also said it spoke with shareholders and surveyed more than 2,000 flyers to understand why consumers chose Southwest over other airlines, according to its presentation.

Southwest has struggled with manufacturing and certification delays at Boeing for new 737 Max planes, the newest models of the jets which the carrier exclusively flies, as well as shifting travel demand patterns after the pandemic.

The airline also faced a reckoning from a holiday meltdown at the end of 2022 that cost it more than $1 billion and forced the airline long known for good customer service to win over the flying public and make quick fixes to its internal staff scheduling software.

Southwest isn’t the only carrier facing activist pressure.Carl Icahn won two board seats at JetBlue Airways in February.

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/06/10/southwest-luv-activist-elliott-stake.html