Professor Jeffrey Sachs is the President of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network and Director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University. He is the author of many best selling books, including The End of Poverty and The Ages of Globalization.
We are in room #20, on the 2nd floor of the Central Museum of the Armed Forces in Moscow. The picture shows the remains of the CIA U2 spy plane, shot down on May 1, 1960 over Sverdlovsk (Yekaterinenburg) by a S-75 Dvina surface-to-air missile strike. Its pilot, Francis Gary Powers, far from swallowing the cyanide capsule he had been given and destroying the plane, preferred to parachute out. The missiles also shot down a Mig-19 that had been chasing the U2, so Powers was initially mistaken for a Soviet pilot, but the misunderstanding was cleared up. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison and then exchanged in 1962 for William Fischer, a KGB spy who had remained as silent as a grave in interrogations.
Convinced that Powers was dead, the White House, the CIA, NASA and the entire Yankee machine covered themselves in ridicule in this case, claiming that the U2 was a weather reconnaissance plane (which was also believed by the pilot's family, who did not know that he had been recruited by the CIA) and that its pilot had had "oxygen problems" over Turkey. NASA even went so far as to stage a media event at Edwards Air Force Base, showing a "similar" U2 with fictitious NASA markings and serial numbers. Unfortunately, Powers was alive and well and Moscow was able to expose the Yankee lies.
We are in the 21st century. Nowadays, Powers are artificial and there is no need to equip them with cyanide, a bundle of rubles and women’s jewelry (which Captain Powers had on him). The remains of the MQ9-Reaper combat and spy drone intercepted (or shot down?) by the Russian air force over the Black Sea (over Ukrainian, Russian, or international territorial waters? - we don't know) have their place in the room n° 20 of the Tsentral'nyy muzey Vooruzhennykh Sil. And Putin, repeating Khrushchev's generous gesture, can always send a piece or the Reaper to Uncle Joe.
sinann, Singapore, 2015
Carsten Hanke, 26-2-2023
Translated by Fausto Giudice, Tlaxcala
Rostock-Berlin - The increasing rejecting by the German population of the war course of the Federal Government and the reporting of the bourgeois media, is reflected in street actions in many cities. It became particularly clear on the 1st anniversary of Russia's military intervention in the killing by the Kiev government of its own population in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions practiced since 2014. According to U.N. observers, at least 14,000 people have been killed in the attacks there since then, and schools, kindergartens, hospitals, and other essential facilities for maintaining supplies to the population have been destroyed.
I would like to give two examples to show that more
and more citizens of the Federal Republic of Germany are publicly expressing
their opposition to the war course of the Federal Government through various
peace actions. These peace-loving people are no longer deterred by defamation
in the media, as happened repeatedly in the run-up to the Manifesto for Peace
by Alice Schwarzer and Sahra Wagenknecht. This Manifesto for Peace was not only
supported by well-known public figures as initial signatories, but also by more
than 600,000 people in a very short time.
On February 24, 2023, about 1,000 demonstrators followed the call of the Berlin Peace Coordination under the motto “Stop the killing in Ukraine - for ceasefire and negotiations!”, which was jointly written by 18 peace groups. Besides well-known speakers, e.g. the initiators of the “Darmstädter Signa”", where active and former German army officers and soldiers always stand up for peaceful conflict resolution, there was a call for protests against war and for peace, with cultural inserts like singing by Diether Dehm, to become active.
"Whoever wants peace, should talk about war" (Walter Benjamin)
Cease-fire, disarmament, peace now!
On February 25 at 2:00 pm the large gathering announced by its initiators Alice Schwarzer and Sahra Wagenknecht as well as retired Brigadier General Erich Vad took place on the west side of the Brandenburg gate in Berlin.
In the announcement of the demonstration, it was expressly pointed out that no party symbols such as flags etc. would be displayed and that party members of the right-wing party AfD and other right-wing extremist groups were not welcome. The organizers themselves had expected a number of participants of about 10,000 people. Due to the fact that nationwide the participants had traveled specially (further members of the GeFiS arrived organized with buses from Rostock and and surrounding area) the beginning of the demonstration had to be shifted around approx. 10 - 15 minutes.
I myself tried to walk the whole demonstration area to take pictures and had to stop my project because the participants were standing so close that it was not possible to get through. According to testimonies of other participants, participants still came to the rally even with a 40-minute delay. The number of participants of 13,000, which was repeatedly reported by the police and the media, did not correspond to the facts by far and gives further evidence that those people do not report truthfully if it is not in their interest.
The numerous spontaneous conversations with the participants of the demonstration were characterized by the great concern that more and more arms deliveries will only bring armament profits, but no peace. Refusing to negotiate does not show the will for peace, but endangers life. The participants are aware that the sanctions and the economic war are damaging Germany and that every citizen is already feeling the effects. They denounce the German government as responsible for inflation and economic decline with their war rhetoric.
Many visitors of the demonstration are aware of NATO commander Stoltenberg's words “rather a nuclear war than a Russian victory in Ukraine”. They have become active in order to make clear that they are against the atomic madness, against [the Installation of US hypersonic missiles] Dark Eagle, against the clearly more extensive atomic equipment with US atomic weapons in Europe and particularly in Germany,. They want to set a public sign against this madness, to rouse at the same time those citizens, who are still passive, to become finally also active.
The divisive smear campaign by politicians in unison with the bourgeois media that the event was “open to the right wing” was made absurd not only in the run-up to the manifestation but also during the entire event.
It was a powerful demonstration for peace and against the federal government and its practiced war course with the constant delivery of weapons to Ukraine. This became clear among other things also by the repeatedly loud demand of the demonstration participants, who chanted “Barebock muss weg!” [“Baerbock* must go!”].
*Annalena Baerbock: Green warmongering Minister of Foreign Affairs
1. Respecting the sovereignty of all countries. Universally recognized international law, including the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter, must be strictly observed. The sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of all countries must be effectively upheld. All countries, big or small, strong or weak, rich or poor, are equal members of the international community. All parties should jointly uphold the basic norms governing international relations and defend international fairness and justice. Equal and uniform application of international law should be promoted, while double standards must be rejected.
2. Abandoning the Cold War mentality. The security of a country should not be pursued at the expense of others. The security of a region should not be achieved by strengthening or expanding military blocs. The legitimate security interests and concerns of all countries must be taken seriously and addressed properly. There is no simple solution to a complex issue. All parties should, following the vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security and bearing in mind the long-term peace and stability of the world, help forge a balanced, effective and sustainable European security architecture. All parties should oppose the pursuit of one’s own security at the cost of others’ security, prevent bloc confrontation, and work together for peace and stability on the Eurasian Continent.
3. Ceasing hostilities. Conflict and war benefit no one. All parties must stay rational and exercise restraint, avoid fanning the flames and aggravating tensions, and prevent the crisis from deteriorating further or even spiraling out of control. All parties should support Russia and Ukraine in working in the same direction and resuming direct dialogue as quickly as possible, so as to gradually deescalate the situation and ultimately reach a comprehensive ceasefire.
4. Resuming peace talks. Dialogue and negotiation are the only viable solution to the Ukraine crisis. All efforts conducive to the peaceful settlement of the crisis must be encouraged and supported. The international community should stay committed to the right approach of promoting talks for peace, help parties to the conflict open the door to a political settlement as soon as possible, and create conditions and platforms for the resumption of negotiation. China will continue to play a constructive role in this regard.
5. Resolving the humanitarian crisis. All measures conducive to easing the humanitarian crisis must be encouraged and supported. Humanitarian operations should follow the principles of neutrality and impartiality, and humanitarian issues should not be politicized. The safety of civilians must be effectively protected, and humanitarian corridors should be set up for the evacuation of civilians from conflict zones. Efforts are needed to increase humanitarian assistance to relevant areas, improve humanitarian conditions, and provide rapid, safe and unimpeded humanitarian access, with a view to preventing a humanitarian crisis on a larger scale. The UN should be supported in playing a coordinating role in channeling humanitarian aid to conflict zones.
6. Protecting civilians and prisoners of war (POWs). Parties to the conflict should strictly abide by international humanitarian law, avoid attacking civilians or civilian facilities, protect women, children and other victims of the conflict, and respect the basic rights of POWs. China supports the exchange of POWs between Russia and Ukraine, and calls on all parties to create more favorable conditions for this purpose.
7. Keeping nuclear power plants safe. China opposes armed attacks against nuclear power plants or other peaceful nuclear facilities, and calls on all parties to comply with international law including the Convention on Nuclear Safety (CNS) and resolutely avoid man-made nuclear accidents. China supports the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in playing a constructive role in promoting the safety and security of peaceful nuclear facilities.
8. Reducing strategic risks. Nuclear weapons must not be used and nuclear wars must not be fought. The threat or use of nuclear weapons should be opposed. Nuclear proliferation must be prevented and nuclear crisis avoided. China opposes the research, development and use of chemical and biological weapons by any country under any circumstances.
9. Facilitating grain exports. All parties need to implement the Black Sea Grain Initiative signed by Russia, Türkiye, Ukraine and the UN fully and effectively in a balanced manner, and support the UN in playing an important role in this regard. The cooperation initiative on global food security proposed by China provides a feasible solution to the global food crisis.
10. Stopping unilateral sanctions. Unilateral sanctions and maximum pressure cannot solve the issue; they only create new problems. China opposes unilateral sanctions unauthorized by the UN Security Council. Relevant countries should stop abusing unilateral sanctions and “long-arm jurisdiction” against other countries, so as to do their share in deescalating the Ukraine crisis and create conditions for developing countries to grow their economies and better the lives of their people.
11. Keeping industrial and supply chains stable. All parties should earnestly maintain the existing world economic system and oppose using the world economy as a tool or weapon for political purposes. Joint efforts are needed to mitigate the spillovers of the crisis and prevent it from disrupting international cooperation in energy, finance, food trade and transportation and undermining the global economic recovery.
12. Promoting post-conflict reconstruction. The international community needs to take measures to support post-conflict reconstruction in conflict zones. China stands ready to provide assistance and play a constructive role in this endeavor.
Sergio
Rodríguez Gelfenstein,
6/10/2022
Translated by Fausto Giudice, Tlaxcala
During my recent visit to Argentina and Uruguay, the sponsoring institutions of my trip organized a tour in which there were 14 presentations of the book "NATO vs. the world" that we wrote together with Jorge Elbaum. Likewise, 7 talks and conferences were held on the subject. In not a few of them, attendees reiterated the query about why the book has the subtitle that I now use for this article: "The conflict in Ukraine as an expression of the change of era", and asked for more on the subject.
In the same way, we assumed that this consequence was what gave global character to the confrontation, since its aftermath was going to impact the entire planet. Thus, the clash was much more than a confrontation of Ukraine against Russia and even of the United States and NATO against Russia.
In this sense, unlike the Second World War when the United States waited until the end for a debacle of the Soviet Union in front of the Nazi army before bursting in mid-1944 when the final result of the conflict after the Soviet victory in Stalingrad in February 1943 was indisputable and categorical, now the “new Normandy Landing” expressed in support of the coup d 'état in Ukraine in 2014, was the detonator of a war of expansion that already lasted 8 years.
In the course of the process, the United States not only supported the extermination of the Russian-speaking population of eastern Ukraine, but also cooperated in the dismantling of the armed forces of that country to transform it into an executing body under the mandate of the Nazi organizations that, with the support of the government of that country, began the “otanization” of that armed component to turn it into a ram of the expansion of NATO, a terrorist military structure that threatens all of humanity.
The obligatory Russian response to safeguard the physical integrity of the inhabitants of the oppressed territories also added as objectives the denazification and demilitarization of Ukraine, thus emulating the objectives agreed by the triumphant powers in the Second World War with regard to Germany, when they met in the German city of Potsdam between 17 July and 2 August 1945.
At the end of the meeting, the president of the United States rushed back to Washington to - just a few days later - order the launch of atomic bombs on the harmless cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki when Japan had already surrendered. In this way, it subordinated - through the most horrible event in the history of mankind - the surrendered and disarmed Japanese empire, which until today has remained attached to the military and political device of the United States.
With Europe, the United States was more subtle: it resorted to buying the wills of the European elites by creating the so-called Marshall Plan, an instrument more susceptible than the atomic bomb to be disclosed by Hollywood as an expression of USAmerican "cooperative values". But the purpose was the same, so Europe became a useful tool of Washington's eagerness to dominate the world.
