Germany publicly declared war against Russia

From Strategic Stability

January 26, 2023

On January 25 Germany and the United States decided to provide Ukraine with Leopard 2 and Abrams tanks totaling 45 (respectively: 14 + 31). Some European countries also intend to join these supplies that could reach around 300 main battle and light tanks during this year. The Pentagon official said that collected ‘the armor basket’ could include 300 tanks and ACV/APC during 2023. It will be 28th ‘basket’ of lethal military supplies of the transatlantic alliance to Ukraine that started on a massive scale in 2022.

1. Unlike fascist Germany, current Germany openly declared a war against Russia on January 25

Arguing in favor of sending NATO tanks and ACV/APC to Ukraine, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said EU countries were fighting a war against Russia. US and EU officials have previously gone out of their way to claim they were not a party to the conflict in Ukraine. It is a wrong statement. The USA and NATO began arming and training Armed Forces of Ukraine soon after the demise of the USSR in 1991.

This is a quotation from what Baerbock has stated at PACE.

“And therefore, I’ve said already in the last days – yes, we have to do more to defend Ukraine. Yes, we have to do more also on tanks,” Baerbock said during a debate at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) on January 25. “But the most important and the crucial part is that we do it together and that we do not do the blame game in Europe, because we are fighting a war against Russia and not against each other.”

It means that unlike fascist Germany that started undeclared war against the Soviet Union on June 22, 1941, current German state openly declared a war against Russia.

If she has not been sacked so far from the German Government, it means that her statement is fully shared by the FRG Government and the Parliament.

It also means that the FRG has radically changed its foreign policy and once again is unleashing the next World War – the Third one.

It means that German tanks again will appear in Ukraine and Russia like in 1941-1945.

It also means that pro-Nazi coalition supports ultra-nationalist regime in Kiev that began its own and unprovoked aggression – initially against Donbass in April 2014, and later against Russia in October 2022.

It means that since January 25, 2023 current joint Ukrainian-NATO actions in Ukraine can be politically and juridically labelled as “a declared direct combined Ukrainian-NATO aggression against the Russian Federation”.

Such Ukrainian-NATO aggression has purely offensive nature.

Its aim is a three-fold:

1) to kill more and more Ukrainians and Russians (in Donbass only April 2014 till January 2023 nearly 20,000 civilians have been killed partly by US/NATO ammunition);

2) to support endlessly ultra-Nazi regime in Ukraine,

and 3) to dismember and destroy entirely the state named “The Russian Federation” and gradually many other states not bowing to NATO and the USA.

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Russia says it will respond comprehensively on U.S. Nord Stream attack

From Strategic Stability
February 10, 2023

Report 201

1. What measures Moscow will adopt against the US Nord Stream attack?

It is widely known that on September 27, 2022, Nord Stream AG reported unprecedented damage that occurred the day before on three strings of the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 offshore gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea. On September 26, Swedish seismologists registered two explosions on the pipeline routes.

Russia may take legal or political measures in connection with recent findings on the US Nord Stream pipeline blasts, published by US investigative journalist Seymour Hersh, a senior Russian diplomat said. “This issue is constantly in our focus, and we will not leave this story unanswered. Political measures may be taken, as well as legal ones,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko told reporters on February 9.

He added that Russia would continue to press for access to the investigation.

“The pipes were Russian, and we are obviously the affected party, so we will press for access to the investigation. We will use all instruments at our disposal to uncover the truth,” the diplomat said.

The same day Grushko criticized Europe’s response to the blasts and its investigation into the matter. “The political stance, taken by Europe with regard to these affairs, exposes political impotence and reluctance to defend Europe’s deeply rooted, core interests, the interests that Europe has as Europe, not as a US satellite,” he said.

“The West bashfully sweeps under the rug the fact that their strategic document amount an attack on critical infrastructure to an armed assault, including in the sense stipulated by [NATO’s Washington Treaty] Article 5,” he added.

“And when an attack on critical infrastructure, on a pillar of Europe’s longstanding economic prosperity has occurred, Europe just swallowed it in silence: no one said anything, they refused to investigate it or let us participate in investigation,” Grushko stressed.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said earlier that “there will be consequences, despite Washington’s numerous refutations” to have a direct involvement into the act of aggression in the Baltic Sea.

According to the article published on February 8, US explosives were planted under the Russian Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines by US Navy divers under the guise of the regular BALTOPS 22 NATO Naval exercise that took place last June in the Baltic Sea. The story cited an unidentified source with direct knowledge of the operational planning as saying that US President Joe Biden personally authorized the operation. The President openly declared it on TV.

[Seymour Hersh’s investigation entitled “How America Took Out The Nord Stream Pipeline” can be found at: https://seymourhersh.substack.com/p/how-america-took-out-the-nord-stream ]

2. Tough measures against Norway will be launched as well

Russia is not surprised by the findings of US investigative journalist Seymour Hersh that Norway was involved in the explosions at the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on February10.

“We have analyzed the American journalist’s publication about the explosions at Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2, <…> we are not surprised by the conclusions of the American journalist of Oslo’s involvement in these acts of sabotage,” a diplomat said, adding that Norway obeys the United States and the European Union in its foreign policy.

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How America took out the Nord Stream pipeline

By Seymour Hersh
February 8, 2023

Referenced article with photos, video, and map at
https://seymourhersh.substack.com/p/how-america-took-out-the-nord-stream

The New York Times called it a “mystery,” but the United States executed a covert sea operation that was kept secret—until now

The U.S. Navy’s Diving and Salvage Center can be found in a location as obscure as its name—down what was once a country lane in rural Panama City, a now-booming resort city in the southwestern panhandle of Florida, 70 miles south of the Alabama border. The center’s complex is as nondescript as its location—a drab concrete post-World War II structure that has the look of a vocational high school on the west side of Chicago. A coin-operated laundromat and a dance school are across what is now a four-lane road.

The center has been training highly skilled deep-water divers for decades who, once assigned to American military units worldwide, are capable of technical diving to do the good—using C4 explosives to clear harbors and beaches of debris and unexploded ordinance—as well as the bad, like blowing up foreign oil rigs, fouling intake valves for undersea power plants, destroying locks on crucial shipping canals. The Panama City center, which boasts the second largest indoor pool in America, was the perfect place to recruit the best, and most taciturn, graduates of the diving school who successfully did last summer what they had been authorized to do 260 feet under the surface of the Baltic Sea.

Last June, the Navy divers, operating under the cover of a widely publicized mid-summer NATO exercise known as BALTOPS 22, planted the remotely triggered explosives that, three months later, destroyed three of the four Nord Stream pipelines, according to a source with direct knowledge of the operational planning.

Two of the pipelines, which were known collectively as Nord Stream 1, had been providing Germany and much of Western Europe with cheap Russian natural gas for more than a decade. A second pair of pipelines, called Nord Stream 2, had been built but were not yet operational. Now, with Russian troops massing on the Ukrainian border and the bloodiest war in Europe since 1945 looming, President Joseph Biden saw the pipelines as a vehicle for Vladimir Putin to weaponize natural gas for his political and territorial ambitions.

Asked for comment, Adrienne Watson, a White House spokesperson, said in an email, “This is false and complete fiction.” Tammy Thorp, a spokesperson for the Central Intelligence Agency, similarly wrote: “This claim is completely and utterly false.”

Biden’s decision to sabotage the pipelines came after more than nine months of highly secret back and forth debate inside Washington’s national security community about how to best achieve that goal. For much of that time, the issue was not whether to do the mission, but how to get it done with no overt clue as to who was responsible.

There was a vital bureaucratic reason for relying on the graduates of the center’s hardcore diving school in Panama City. The divers were Navy only, and not members of America’s Special Operations Command, whose covert operations must be reported to Congress and briefed in advance to the Senate and House leadership—the so-called Gang of Eight. The Biden Administration was doing everything possible to avoid leaks as the planning took place late in 2021 and into the first months of 2022.

President Biden and his foreign policy team—National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, Secretary of State Tony Blinken, and Victoria Nuland, the Undersecretary of State for Policy—had been vocal and consistent in their hostility to the two pipelines, which ran side by side for 750 miles under the Baltic Sea from two different ports in northeastern Russia near the Estonian border, passing close to the Danish island of Bornholm before ending in northern Germany.

The direct route, which bypassed any need to transit Ukraine, had been a boon for the German economy, which enjoyed an abundance of cheap Russian natural gas—enough to run its factories and heat its homes while enabling German distributors to sell excess gas, at a profit, throughout Western Europe. Action that could be traced to the administration would violate US promises to minimize direct conflict with Russia. Secrecy was essential.

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US will send long-range missiles to Ukraine

From WSWS

February 7, 2023

The White House announced Friday that it would send long-range missiles capable of striking nearly 100 miles into Russian territory to Ukraine, in one of the most significant escalations of US involvement in the war with Russia to date.

Following Washington’s tradition of the “Friday afternoon news dump,” the announcement was timed so as to garner as little public attention as possible.

The pliant American media supported the Biden administration’s goal of keeping the American public from understanding the consequences of this action. This massive escalation of the war against Russia received effectively no media coverage. It was not featured on the front pages of the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, or Washington Post, and was not reported on the evening network news shows.

The weapons system, known as the ground-launched Small Diameter Bomb, is a rocket-launched maneuverable glide bomb with double the range of the HIMARS missiles Washington has already provided.

Airmen with the 3rd Munitions Squadron assemble a rack of inert small diameter bombs during readiness training at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, Feb. 9, 2018. The small diameter bomb is a precise and accurate weapon that allows the the F-22 Raptor to deliver decisive air power. (U.S. Air Force photo by Alejandro Peña)

The announcement marks a repudiation of Biden’s pledge in May that “We are not encouraging or enabling Ukraine to strike beyond its borders,” and his declaration that “We’re not going to send to Ukraine rocket systems that strike into Russia.”

The announcement is the latest in a whirlwind escalation of US involvement in the war over the past week. On January 26, the White House declared that it would send 31 Abrams main battle tanks to Ukraine, as part of a coalition of NATO countries sending over 120 main battle tanks in the first “wave.”

No sooner was this announcement made than the White House revealed that it was in discussions to send F-16 fighters to Ukraine, against the backdrop of demands by Democratic and Republican politicians and dominant sections of the US media to send the aircraft.

The expected announcement of the new long-range weapons comes as press reports indicate that the Biden administration is discussing openly endorsing a Ukrainian assault on the predominantly Russian-speaking peninsula of Crimea, which Russia has claimed as its territory since 2014.

While the Biden administration endorsed the Zelensky government’s Crimean Platform back in 2021, which entails the “retaking of Crimea,” since the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, Washington had toned down its explicit endorsement for the official war aim of the Zelensky government in order to hide the massively escalatory character of its involvement in the war.

Now, however, the New York Times reports, “(T)he Biden administration is finally starting to concede that Kyiv may need the power to strike the Russian sanctuary, even if such a move increases the risk of escalation.”

The Times writes that “the Biden administration is considering what would be one of its boldest moves yet, helping Ukraine to attack the peninsula.”

In an article for the think tank magazine Foreign Affairs, entitled “What Ukraine Needs to Liberate Crimea,” United States Army Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman declared, “Washington should give Ukraine the weapons and assistance it needs to win quickly and decisively.” Vindman is the former director for European affairs for the US National Security Council.

In the article, Vindman explained how a NATO-backed Ukrainian offensive against Crimea would proceed:

The first step would be to pin down Russia’s forces in the Kherson and Luhansk regions and in the northern part of Donetsk. Next, Ukraine would free the remainder of Zaporizhzhia Province and push through southern Donetsk to reach the Sea of Azov, severing Russia’s land bridge to Ukraine. Ukrainian forces would also need to destroy the Kerch Strait Bridge, which connects Russia to the Crimean Peninsula and allows Moscow to resupply its troops by road and rail.

What none of the planners of this offensive admit, however, is that its implementation will require a massive expansion of NATO involvement in the war, including not only the deployment of advanced weapons systems, but the direct deployment of NATO troops.

Last week, explaining the deployment of the M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine, the WSWS outlined how  such a scenario could unfold:

The significance of Biden’s announcement lies less in the battlefield impact of the tanks than in the consequences of deploying them. The turbine-driven Abrams tanks will require a massive logistical network inside Ukraine, involving large numbers of specialist American contractors. Attacks on these supply networks and American personnel servicing the tanks will then be used to press for implementation of a “no-fly zone” and the deployment of US and NATO troops to Ukraine.

Just one week after these words were written, the initial stages of this scenario are already being put into place.

On Friday, Politico reported that “A group of former military officers and private donors is raising money to send Western mechanics close to the Ukrainian frontlines, where they will repair battle-damaged donated weapons and vehicles that have been flooding into the country.”

The report continued, “The plan is to find 100 to 200 experienced contractors who would travel to Ukraine and embed themselves with small units near the front lines. Under the project, called Trident Support, those contractors would in turn teach the Ukrainian troops how to fix their equipment on the fly.”

The claim that this initiative is being led by “retired” officers is merely a fraudulent pretense distancing the Biden administration from this deployment. While the deployment of the contractors may be “voluntary,” threats to the safety of the hundreds of American personnel on the front lines maintaining American vehicles could serve just as well as a pretext for US escalation of the war.

The original source of this article is wsws

Copyright © Andre Damonwsws, 2023

https://www.globalresearch.ca/us-sends-long-range-missiles-to-ukraine/5807574

3 February. Montenegro: NATO troops arrived last night on the mountains we’re trying to protect from them — Save Sinjajevina

By World BEYOND War,
February 3, 2023

The people of Montenegro, led by the Save Sinjajevina campaign, have done everything people can do to prevent atrocities in so-called democracies. They’ve won over public opinion. They’ve elected officials promising to protect their mountains. They’ve lobbied, organized public protests, and made themselves into human shields. They show no signs of planning to give up, much less to believe the UK’s official position that this mountain destruction is environmentalism, while NATO has been threatening to use Sinjajevina for war training in May 2023!

Last night, 250 NATO soldiers arrived in Sinjajevina. They claim that they will do no artillery shooting, just alpinistic exercises.

The Prime Minister of Montenegro Dritan Abazovic had promised on television two weeks ago that there would not be any military activities in Sinjajevina. He’s broken another promise.

Six members of Save Sinjajevina are now in place where they had a large resistance camp in 2020. Despite temperatures of -10ºC they are organizing a nonviolent resistance effort yet again.

The place where the people are gathering is called Margita. They have celebrated the anniversary of their resistance at that spot. They have engraved on a rock there with golden letters a phrase of legend dedicating it to resistance.

For background information, a petition to sign, a form to donate, and more photos and videos, go to https://worldbeyondwar.org/sinjajevina

Photos of the NATO troops are on this page:
https://www.facebook(dot)com/savesinjajevina?fref=nf

U.S. germ warfare program flourishing

Documents leaked to Bulgarian journalist Dilyana Gaytandzhieva by Georgian insiders indicate that the US Embassy to Tbilisi is involved in the trafficking of frozen human blood and pathogens as diplomatic cargo for a secret military program.  

See more about Georgia which is under pressure to become a second front in the US-NATO war on Russia at https://southfront(dot)org/after-kiev-regime-destroyed-ukraine-they-attempted-to-instigate-war-in-georgia/. 

http://space4peace.blogspot.com/2023/02/us-germ-warfare-program-flourishing.html

Okinawa faces a crisis. Citizens appeal for your support 26 February.

Posted on Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space

February 11, 2023

To: All you folks who think peace is the better option
From: No More Battle of Okinawa: Nuchi du Takara (Life is a Treasure) People’s Association
Co-representatives: Hiroji Yamashiro; C. Douglas Lummis (and others).
Contact address: Ideaspeddler(at)gmail.com

As you may know, The US and Japanese governments have announced that, in the event of a “Taiwan contingency”, the “Southwest Islands” will become a war zone. “Contingency” is a softer way of saying “war”, and “Southwest Islands” means the Ryukyu Archipelago: Okinawa.

The two governments are not simply predicting that will happen. They are arranging so that it will happen. That is, all along the outer islands of the Ryukyu Archipelago they are building new missile launching sites, targeting China – this in addition to the formidable attack bases already on Okinawa main island. Should any of these missiles actually be fired on the Chinese mainland or against Chinese naval vessels, the Chinese military will have the right, under the international law of war, to return the fire. The Mayor of Naha [Okinawa] has already begun carrying out civil defense drills.

This is not an issue only for in-principle pacifists, who believe all war should be abolished. To fight a war in a neutral country is a violation of the law of war itself. Okinawa is not merely neutral, it is not a party to this war in any way, shape or form. Okinawa has no quarrel with China. Many see this as a replay of the Battle of Okinawa, and are asking, Are we to be the sacrificial pawns (sute-ishi in Japanese) – again?

There is a new movement forming now in Okinawa to point out the grotesque absurdity of fighting this war in Okinawa and to call for a negotiated peace. Please understand: This is a movement that can include people who accept the necessity of some wars, but not this one. (Even dedicated soldiers can, with perfect consistency, call for a negotiated peace.)

A large gathering to voice opposition to Okinawa becoming again a war zone and to demand negotiations is being planned for 26 February, Okinawa time. It would be very encouraging if you could support this action, either as an organization or as individuals – and this either by taking some simple action on the same day, or by sending messages of support.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is image-1.png

Statement from Global Network:

The Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space shares the deep concerns of the people of Okinawa about the possibility of US-NATO war against China that would directly impact your island home.

Recent belligerent words by Pentagon officials signal that Washington is indeed planning such a horrific war.

Already the US-NATO has launched a war against Russia using Ukraine as a proxy.

The US intends to do the same to China using Taiwan as the instrument to justify this war.

It is more than insane for Washington to think it can fight against two nuclear powers at virtually the same time. This is a clear sign of US desperation to remain as ‘king of the hill’.

We declare our solidarity with the people throughout the Ryukyu Archipelago and beyond.

Close US bases on Okinawa!
No war with China!

Bruce K. Gagnon
Coordinator
Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space

http://space4peace.blogspot.com/2023/02/okinawa-faces-crisis-this-is-appeal-for.html

Short video: U.S. is sending new, very destructive nuclear B61-12 warheads to Europe without public knowledge or consent

From ICAN

This short animated video explains about the new nuclear warhead the United States is delivering to Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy and Turkey without the people’s knowledge or consent. Spread the word and help get these weapons of mass destruction out of Europe and build momentum for these countries to join the treaty banning nuclear weapons instead.

From International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons
https://www.icanw.org/

As many of you know, there are new US nuclear weapons which POLITICO announced [1] could be delivered to US host countries – Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Turkey, as soon as December, replacing the current weapons stationed in those countries. 

The B61-12 warhead is a more advanced warhead from the ones currently stationed in countries hosting US nuclear weapons. It has different yields,[2] from 0.3kt to 50kt, but could be even more destructive if detonated underground, increasing its yield to up to 1,250kt, 83 times the size of Hiroshima-sized nuclear weapons.

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