Rabobank: Russia Is Prepared To Declare Economic War On The West, Inflicting "Huge Economic Pain"
By Michael Every of Rabobank via Zero Hedge
There seems no way to bridge the fundamental differences in interpretations of the 1975 Helsinki European security agreement that says all states are sovereign and free to decide which defence alliance they want to join, and that no state should join an alliance seen as a threat by another. Which clause has primacy? The former, if you view NATO as defensive. The latter, if you see NATO as offensive.
As in the 1920s/30s, you also get passionate, polarized views on who is to blame. There are those who see Putin as Hitler and Ukraine as the Sudetenland – or Poland. There are those who see the ‘US Deep State’ driving things. And both can be true, which just makes matters worse.
Meanwhile, the scandal-plagued UK government (this time it is about prosecco, not cake) and its Polish and Ukrainian counterparts are to sign a trilateral defence treaty. Of course, such defense pacts are not new - back in September 1996 the same trio were saying the same thing. Yet the UK guaranteeing not just Ukraine’s but Poland’s border…are history, and the UK government, slurring old lyrics, rhyming or repeating themselves?
There is also pressure building in the Balkans: Bosnia, Kosovo, Albania, Serbia, Montenegro, and North Macedonia --maybe even EU member Bulgaria-- are all in a pot Russia is helping to stir. Its Foreign Minister just stated he does not accept that Montenegro and North Macedonia should be NATO members when they already are.
Yet NATO member Hungary’s PM just visited Moscow, and the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs oozed: “Hungary has invariably confirmed its reputation as a reliable partner in the transit of Russian fuels. Naturally, we are willing to build up mutually advantageous cooperation in this area.” In other words, don’t expect any EU energy sanctions if Budapest has a veto? Yet that means the West has no pressure point against Russia except the military, where it is outgunned.
Meanwhile, Russia just banned the export of ammonium nitrate for two months (while Lithuania has fully blocked the rail shipment of potash from Belarus). The potential upside impact on fertilizer prices in Europe should be obvious. So should the fact that Russia clearly understands the geopolitical and geoeconomic pressure points that *it* controls. They can see the US does not want to raise rates but has to. They can also see that they can force inflation far higher, inflicting huge economic pain, even if they take some too. That is how economic wars work. Are we ready to fight one, or are we going to redraw borders to avoid one?
The scale of what is happening over markets’ heads --and the naval-gazing drivel on Bloomberg this morning-- is summarized by former Portuguese politician Bruno Maçães in a Time magazine article, “What Happens Next in Ukraine Could Change Europe Forever”. In it, he notes: “The Russian television anchor Dmitry Kiselyov, known as a reliable Kremlin mouthpiece, explained on air during the past weekend that the current crisis is not about Ukraine: ‘The scale is much bigger.’” I concur: which is why I called it a metacrisis.
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British Government Laundered Fake U.S. 'Intelligence' On Ukraine
from Moon Of Alabama
U.K. accuses Russia of scheming to install a pro-Kremlin government in Ukraine
by Paul Sonne, John Hudson, Shane Harris
The British government on Saturday accused Russia of organizing a plot to install a pro-Moscow government in Ukraine, as the Kremlin masses troops and materiel near the Ukrainian border in what Western officials fear is an impending military assault on the neighboring nation.The U.K. Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office gave relatively little information about the intelligence unveiled Saturday other than to say that the Russian government was considering trying to make a Russia-leaning former member of Ukraine’s parliament, Yevhen Murayev, the country’s new leader.
“The information being released today shines a light on the extent of Russian activity designed to subvert Ukraine, and is an insight into Kremlin thinking,” U.K. Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said in a statement, calling on Russia to de-escalate and pursue a path of diplomacy.
“As the U.K. and our partners have said repeatedly, any Russian military incursion into Ukraine would be a massive strategic mistake with severe costs,” Truss said.
British authorities also said they had information showing how Russia’s intelligence services maintain links with numerous former Ukrainian politicians. Some of those former Ukrainian politicians are in contact with Russian intelligence officers planning the attack on Ukraine, the British government said.
Last week, British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss publicly accused Russia
of organizing a plot to install a pro-Moscow government led by a former
member of Ukraine’s parliament.
The intelligence underlying that revelation, which
also linked some former Ukrainian politicians to Russian intelligence
officers involved in planning for an attack on Ukraine, was collected and declassified by the United States, according to multiple people familiar with the matter.
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Russia catalog
PayPal defunds The Exposé for reporting the facts the mainstream refuse to
from The Expose, 2 February 2022
PayPal is the latest tech giant to join the censorship game, shutting down its services for a variety of organisations opposed to Covid-19 vaccine mandates, including The Expose.
This increasingly orchestrated attack has also targeted the National Vaccine Information Center (NVIC), the Front Line COVID-19 Critical Care Alliance (FLCCC), Organic Consumer’s Association (OCA) and many others — and should send a chill down the spine of anyone who values freedom.
Powerful forces are at play, and Big Tech is among them, working to suppress, discredit and silence certain science, speech and viewpoints. “No longer is there any doubt,” investigative journalist Sharyl Attkisson reported, “that vaccine industry interests and other corporate and political interests are pulling the strings so that Big Tech moves to squash scientific views, studies, scientists, and opinions that are contrary to the narrative.”
On 5th Jan 22, PayPal suddenly notified The Expose that it would no
longer process donations from our supporters – effective immediately.
This means The Expose instantly lost over 75% of its monthly subscribers
who had chosen to support us via PayPal.
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Grooming gang victims have been failed by authorities, shocking testimonies show
from GB News
Grooming gang victims, often children, have been failed by authorities, according to an inquiry. The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) looked into abuse by grooming gangs in England and Wales, which has uncovered horrific cases. A victim codenamed CS-A12 was a sufferer of domestic violence by her stepfather as well as her mother.[Daily Stirrer] ... [ Our Page on on Substack ]... [Boggart Aboad] ... [ Greenteeth Home ] ... [ Greenteeth on Minds.com ] ... [ Latest Posts ] ... [ ] ... [ Child abuse Rotherham ]
