Nations around the world are picking sides…. Russia/Brics or America/Nato… 17th BRICS Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
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Türkey may ratify Sweden's accession to NATO
The new head of the US Senate for Foreign Relations, Ben Cardin, spoke about this and said they will look into the Turkish request for F-16 supplies worth $20B
He said he discussed Sweden's entry into NATO with Turkish officials at a meeting of NATO ambassadors.
“They claim that this will be done in the first half of next month... If this is indeed the case, then at least the issue with NATO has been resolved, but there are other issues besides joining NATO that should be part of our discussions,” - he said.
Meanwhile, Hungary does not give the go-ahead for Sweden to join NATO and does not soften its position. — /OstashkoNews
The new head of the US Senate for Foreign Relations, Ben Cardin, spoke about this and said they will look into the Turkish request for F-16 supplies worth $20B
He said he discussed Sweden's entry into NATO with Turkish officials at a meeting of NATO ambassadors.
“They claim that this will be done in the first half of next month... If this is indeed the case, then at least the issue with NATO has been resolved, but there are other issues besides joining NATO that should be part of our discussions,” - he said.
Meanwhile, Hungary does not give the go-ahead for Sweden to join NATO and does not soften its position. — /OstashkoNews
Jens Stoltenberg said he was confident that both Poland and Slovakia would continue to support Ukraine in its war with Russia after the impending elections.
"I hope and trust that Ukraine and Poland will find a way to address those issues (such as grain) without negatively affecting military support for Ukraine."
"Whatever new government they have in Slovakia, we will continue to sit in on NATO meetings," Stoltenberg said, "and I am confident that we will find ways to continue to provide support, as we have done after every election in this alliance since the war began," added the NATO Secretary General
"I hope and trust that Ukraine and Poland will find a way to address those issues (such as grain) without negatively affecting military support for Ukraine."
"Whatever new government they have in Slovakia, we will continue to sit in on NATO meetings," Stoltenberg said, "and I am confident that we will find ways to continue to provide support, as we have done after every election in this alliance since the war began," added the NATO Secretary General
Stoltenberg claims to be "constantly pressuring" NATO states to provide more support to Ukraine and accelerate the delivery of air defense systems.
The Secretary General of NATO announced that the Atlantic alliance has general framework contracts with arms companies worth 2.4 billion euros for ammunition, which would be used to supply Ukraine and replenish the stocks of NATO countries.
The Secretary General of NATO announced that the Atlantic alliance has general framework contracts with arms companies worth 2.4 billion euros for ammunition, which would be used to supply Ukraine and replenish the stocks of NATO countries.
The list of candidate states for new BRICS partners will be approved at the association’s upcoming summit next year, which will be held in Kazan. This was stated to TASS by Ambassador-at-Large of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Russia's Sous-Sherpa in BRICS, Pavel Knyazev.
A few relevant comments mixed in here:
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Chapters:
00:00 Start
1:00 China's Economic Situation
5:11 Investing in Emerging Markets
12:33 Technology and Investment Trends
14:20 The Future of Asia
16:39 Demographic Changes and Inflation
19:56 Brexit and Its Effects
22:45 Why People Like London
26:45 Power of the Irish Passport
29:02 Patrick's Opinion on "BRICS"
33:40 EU and Ukraine's EU Aspirations
38:30 Insights on FTX and its Founder
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Chapters:
00:00 Start
1:00 China's Economic Situation
5:11 Investing in Emerging Markets
12:33 Technology and Investment Trends
14:20 The Future of Asia
16:39 Demographic Changes and Inflation
19:56 Brexit and Its Effects
22:45 Why People Like London
26:45 Power of the Irish Passport
29:02 Patrick's Opinion on "BRICS"
33:40 EU and Ukraine's EU Aspirations
38:30 Insights on FTX and its Founder
Chinese and Saudi navies launch joint counterterrorism exercise against backdrop of Israel-Hamas war
Blue Sword-2023 focuses on overseas maritime counterterrorism operations and comprises basic training, professional training and comprehensive exercises The timing of the joint drill was announced in September but now comes as the death toll from the most recent Israel-Hamas conflict exceeds 1,500
Seong Hyeon Choi1:44pm, 10 Oct, 2023
China and Saudi Arabia have launched a joint naval exercise that is focused on overseas maritime counterterrorism operations, according to Chinese state-owned media.
The exercises, attended by more than 100 service personnel from the two militaries, comes as the Middle East is hit by escalating armed conflict between Israel and Hamas.
The opening ceremony of the Blue Sword-2023 special warfare joint training was held at a naval brigade camp in Zhanjiang in Guangdong province on Monday, according to the Chinese military’s official newspaper, the PLA Daily.
“The joint training between the special warfare units of the two navies is of great significance to deepening the pragmatic and friendly cooperation between the two militaries and improving the actual combat training level of the troops,” said the commander of the Chinese joint training unit whose name was not revealed.
“It is hoped that the participating officers and troops on both sides will learn from each other, cooperate closely, complete various training courses with high quality and continuously improve their joint action capabilities.”
Blue Sword-2023 focuses on overseas maritime counterterrorism operations and comprises three stages: basic training, professional training and comprehensive exercises.
Basic training and professional training involve shooting various weapons, rappelling from a helicopter, steering vessels, underwater searches and disposal of explosives, while the comprehensive exercise focuses on a joint special operations unit rescuing a hijacked merchant ship, as well as carrying out maritime assault rescue training.
9 Oct 2023
The two countries held their first joint exercise, Blue Sword-2019, four years ago in the Red Sea near the Saudi port of Jeddah.
The exercises in 2019 also focused on tackling “maritime terrorism and piracy”.
While timing of this week’s joint drill was announced in September, it comes amid escalating armed conflict between Israel and Palestine that began with surprise attacks against southern Israeli cities from Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip on Saturday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahuhas declared his country is in a state of war and the Israeli military has besieged the Gaza Strip. The death toll from both sides had reached more than 1,500 by Tuesday.
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas his country stood by Palestinians and was working to stop the conflict, according to the kingdom’s state news agency.
The United States has been mediating an agreement between Saudi Arabia and Israel which could see Washington granting Riyadh a defence treaty in exchange for the kingdom normalising relations with Israel.
In the face of US-China rivalry, Beijing has attempted to increase its foothold in the Middle East. In March, Saudi Arabia and Iran agreed to restore diplomatic ties, with Beijing mediating the agreement between the two Middle Eastern powers.
On the war in Israel, the Chinese foreign ministry said Beijing was “deeply concerned” about the escalation of conflict between Palestine and Israel, and urged the two parties to “exercise calm and restraint”.
NATO chief presses Turkey to advance Sweden’s membership application.
BRUSSELS (AP) — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Thursday pressed Turkey to quickly ratify Sweden’s membership in the military organization, three months after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he would help hasten the process in the Turkish parliament.“Many allies would like to see speedy progress on this ratification,” Stoltenberg told The Associated Press after chairing a meeting of NATO defense ministers in Brussels. “Sweden has delivered on what they promised, and now we need the ratification of Swedish membership.”
Sweden and its neighbor Finland turned their backs on decades of military non-alignment after President Vladimir Putin ordered Russia troops to invade Ukraine in February 2022. Their aim was to seek protection under NATO’s security umbrella, and Finland joined in April.
All 31 NATO allies must endorse Sweden’s membership. Turkey and Hungary are dragging their feet. Erdogan spent months publicly saying he was withholding his country’s approval because he believed that Sweden had been too soft on Kurdish militants and other groups that he considers to be security threats. Many allies doubted that.
Other news
Turkey also was angered by a series of Quran-burning protests in Sweden.
At a NATO summit in Lithuania’s capital in July, Erdogan relented and said he would transmit Sweden’s accession protocol to the Turkish parliament for ratification, the final step for Turkey to endorse its candidature.
Stoltenberg said he welcomed a commitment Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler made during Thursday’s meeting which “made it clear that Turkey would stand by the agreement.” But it remains unclear when Ankara will do so.
Erdogan dropped his opposition in July after the Biden administration signaled it would let Turkey buy 40 new F-16 fighter jets and modernization kits from the United States. Ankara also received assurances from Sweden that it would help revive Turkey’s own quest to join the European Union.
Under the deal, NATO as an organization agreed to address Turkey’s concerns about terrorism. Stoltenberg said Thursday that he had appointed Assistant Secretary General Tom Goffus will serve as his special coordinator for counter-terrorism.
“It demonstrates that NATO, Sweden, we have delivered on the agreement from Vilnius, and now we should also see that Turkey ratifies the Swedish accession,” Stoltenberg said.
It had been hoped that the long-awaited ratification would come soon after Oct. 1, when Turkey’s parliament resumed work following a summer recess. But on the same day, a suicide bomber blew himself up outside the interior ministry in Ankara. Another would-be bomber was killed in a shootout with police. Two officers were wounded.
The attack prompted Turkey to mount airstrikes against suspected Kurdish militant sites in northern Iraq, against Syrian Kurdish militia in Syria, and to launch a series of raids across Turkey in which dozens of people with suspected links to the Kurdish militants were rounded up.
Hungary’s objections are not entirely clear. Prime Minister Viktor Orban has repeatedly said that his country would not be the last to endorse Sweden’s membership. That stance has left Stockholm and some allies perplexed, as no public demands have been made to win his approval.
Some vague allusions have surfaced. Orban’s government has alleged that Swedish politicians have told “blatant lies” about the state of Hungary’s democracy and that this has left some lawmakers unsure about whether to support the accession bid.
Last month, Orban said he was in no hurry. He told lawmakers that “nothing is threatening Sweden’s security,” and that Hungary was therefore in “no rush” to ratify its membership.
“I haven’t heard anything new about that from the Hungarian side,” Stoltenberg told the AP.
You know what it’s time for America to take a step back from this and let the China deal with this. Although we still need to pay attention to Ukraine Russia conflict.Chinese and Saudi navies launch joint counterterrorism exercise against backdrop of Israel-Hamas war
Blue Sword-2023 focuses on overseas maritime counterterrorism operations and comprises basic training, professional training and comprehensive exercises The timing of the joint drill was announced in September but now comes as the death toll from the most recent Israel-Hamas conflict exceeds 1,500
Seong Hyeon Choi1:44pm, 10 Oct, 2023
China and Saudi Arabia have launched a joint naval exercise that is focused on overseas maritime counterterrorism operations, according to Chinese state-owned media.
The exercises, attended by more than 100 service personnel from the two militaries, comes as the Middle East is hit by escalating armed conflict between Israel and Hamas.
The opening ceremony of the Blue Sword-2023 special warfare joint training was held at a naval brigade camp in Zhanjiang in Guangdong province on Monday, according to the Chinese military’s official newspaper, the PLA Daily.
“The joint training between the special warfare units of the two navies is of great significance to deepening the pragmatic and friendly cooperation between the two militaries and improving the actual combat training level of the troops,” said the commander of the Chinese joint training unit whose name was not revealed.
“It is hoped that the participating officers and troops on both sides will learn from each other, cooperate closely, complete various training courses with high quality and continuously improve their joint action capabilities.”
Blue Sword-2023 focuses on overseas maritime counterterrorism operations and comprises three stages: basic training, professional training and comprehensive exercises.
Basic training and professional training involve shooting various weapons, rappelling from a helicopter, steering vessels, underwater searches and disposal of explosives, while the comprehensive exercise focuses on a joint special operations unit rescuing a hijacked merchant ship, as well as carrying out maritime assault rescue training.
9 Oct 2023
The two countries held their first joint exercise, Blue Sword-2019, four years ago in the Red Sea near the Saudi port of Jeddah.
The exercises in 2019 also focused on tackling “maritime terrorism and piracy”.
While timing of this week’s joint drill was announced in September, it comes amid escalating armed conflict between Israel and Palestine that began with surprise attacks against southern Israeli cities from Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip on Saturday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahuhas declared his country is in a state of war and the Israeli military has besieged the Gaza Strip. The death toll from both sides had reached more than 1,500 by Tuesday.
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas his country stood by Palestinians and was working to stop the conflict, according to the kingdom’s state news agency.
The United States has been mediating an agreement between Saudi Arabia and Israel which could see Washington granting Riyadh a defence treaty in exchange for the kingdom normalising relations with Israel.
In the face of US-China rivalry, Beijing has attempted to increase its foothold in the Middle East. In March, Saudi Arabia and Iran agreed to restore diplomatic ties, with Beijing mediating the agreement between the two Middle Eastern powers.
On the war in Israel, the Chinese foreign ministry said Beijing was “deeply concerned” about the escalation of conflict between Palestine and Israel, and urged the two parties to “exercise calm and restraint”.
With eye on U.S., Turkey in no rush to back Sweden's NATO bid - sources
Jonathan SpicerOctober 17, 20233:09 AM CDTUpdated 6 hours ago
ANKARA, Oct 16 (Reuters) - Turkey is willing to hold off ratifying Sweden's bid to join NATO this month as it awaits signs of U.S. support for its own request to buy F-16 jets, sources said, potentially disappointing bloc allies hoping to end 17 months of delay.
President Tayyip Erdogan elated a NATO summit in July by promising to send the bid to Turkey's parliament for ratification when it reopened in October, appearing to green-light Sweden after having raised objections over its alleged harbouring of terrorists.
However since parliament opened on Oct. 1, its foreign affairs commission, which would debate the NATO bid, has received almost 60 international agreements to review - excluding Sweden's, official data shows.
Two people familiar with the situation said Ankara wanted to move in tandem with Washington, where the State Department is expected at some time to seek congressional approval for a $20-billion sale of F-16 fighters to Turkey and dozens of modernisation kits.
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"Given the lack of trust over the issue of F-16s and Sweden, Turkey is not rushing to ratify the NATO bid and looking for a sign that the United States is taking steps at the same time," said an official from Erdogan's ruling AK Party.
A second person familiar with U.S.-Turkish talks said a rough proposal - in which each side would take steps toward ratifying the NATO bid on the one side, and the F-16s purchase on the other - had been delayed.
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Erdogan's office did not immediately comment on a time frame for Sweden's ratification or on any U.S. talks.
The U.S. State Department looked forward to Sweden joining NATO "in the near future", a spokesperson said, and that President Joe Biden backed the F-16s sale in the interest of the alliance, the United States and its relationship with Turkey."
"(W)e should do both of these things," the spokesperson said.
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IN NO RUSH
Turkey, NATO's second-biggest military, is still expected to ultimately endorse Sweden's bid and could rapidly move on it.But Turkish officials and foreign diplomats say Erdogan is in no rush, especially after a bomb attack in Ankara on the day parliament opened and, days later, the downing of an unmanned Turkish drone by the United States in northern Syria.
Addressing the drone incident, which occurred near U.S. troops on Oct. 5, Erdogan said last week: "Isn't Turkey a NATO ally of the U.S.? ...How can we explain this? Only when it suits them, they call themselves partners".
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Sweden and Finland applied to join NATO last year after Russia invaded Ukraine. Finnish membership was sealed in April, marking an historic expansion of the Western defence bloc, but Sweden's bid remains held up by Turkey and Hungary.
Turkey says Sweden must take more steps at home to clamp down on the militant Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which the European Union and United States also deem a terrorist group.
After meeting NATO counterparts in Brussels on Friday, Turkish Defence Minister Yasar Guler told reporters Sweden was expected to implement new counter-terrorism measures, adding parliament "would have the final say" on ratification.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said on Friday he was convinced the process to join NATO will be resolved "reasonably soon," given Stockholm has fulfilled all commitments in a deal signed last year with Ankara and Helsinki.
LEVERAGE
But Erdogan appears willing to leverage the situation for other gains. Last month, he openly floated exchanging Sweden's ratification for the U.S. go-ahead to upgrade Turkey's F-16 fleet.With Washington keen to expand NATO, senior U.S. and Turkish officials had sketched out a plan in which Erdogan would send the NATO proposal to parliament and the State Department would ask leaders of the U.S. Senate and House foreign affairs committees to review the F-16 deal, the second source said.
But hopes for a swift approval took a blow on Oct. 1 when the PKK claimed responsibility for the bomb attack near Ankara government buildings.
In response, Turkey redoubled strikes on militant targets in Iraq and Syria, where the United States is allied with some Kurdish fighters, leading to the drone incident.
After that, the second source said, discussions quieted down on the U.S.-Turkish proposal to move roughly in parallel.
While the White House endorses the sale of the Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) F-16s, there are objections in Congress over Turkey delaying NATO enlargement and its human rights record.
Another potential strain in U.S.-Turkish ties emerged last week in Israel's war against Palestinian militant group Hamas.
Erdogan - long supportive of Palestinians and a two-state solution - said that a U.S. aircraft carrier that arrived in the eastern Mediterranean was meant to commit "serious massacres" in the Gaza Strip.
Additional reporting by Humeyra Pamuk in Riyadh and Simon Johnson in Stockholm; Editing by Bernadette Baum
Ukraine 'light years away' from joining EU, says Hungarian PM Viktor Orban
Published on 19/11/2023 - 07:25ADVERTISEMENT
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said Ukraine is "light years away" from joining the EU.
The comments came as he was reelected as the president of the right-wing nationalist Fidesz party for the 11th consecutive time in Budapest on Saturday.
“Our task will be to correct the mistaken promise to start negotiations with Ukraine since Ukraine is now light years away from the European Union,” Orban said.
Hungary's Prime Minister argued that the EU's promise to start admission talks with Kyiv was a "mistake," adding he and his government would “resist” EU talks scheduled for mid-December on whether to formally extend an invitation to Kyiv to join.
Unanimity among all member states is required to admit a new country into the EU, giving Orban a powerful veto.
The EU's executive earlier this month recommended the beginning of accession talks with Ukraine, saying that its government “has shown a remarkable level of institutional strength, determination and ability to function.”
But Orban, one of Russian President Vladimir Putin's only EU allies, has argued that negotiations should not begin with a country that is at war, and that Ukraine's accession would reorient the EU's system of distributing funds to member countries.
Some critics have speculated that Hungary, which has also threatened to block an EU plan to provide a four-year, €50 billion aid package for Ukraine, is using its resistance to leverage concessions from the EU.
Billions in funding have been withheld from Budapest over concerns that the government has failed to uphold rule-of-law and human rights standards.
Oh, they was paying attention but the problem with this is China is running over to America begging for help about something that currency is not going too well
Arabia wants to use them as a secret military for their actions. If gas prices keep diving, these assholes are going to do some crazy shit.
Finnish folks having hard time returning after visiting Russia
“A remarkable incident occurred on the Russian-Finnish border, clearly demonstrating the consequences of the actions taken by the authorities in Helsinki to create tension in the region.
In the video, a Finnish citizen, who was in Petrozavodsk on family business, decided to return to his native country for medical treatment. However, Finnish border guards refused him entry and defiantly installed an anti-ram device.
Instead, they suggested that the person return home through a third country. Additionally, they warned him that he would face a fine for "violating the state border."
This serves as a clear example that Finnish citizens themselves, even with Finnish passports, are the ones who suffer the most from Finland's decision to close the checkpoints for entry and exit into Russia. They are denied the opportunity to return home, even when it may be a matter of life and death.
However, for the government in Helsinki, this seems to be an acceptable price to pay in order to militarize the country, serving the interests of its NATO partners.”
“A remarkable incident occurred on the Russian-Finnish border, clearly demonstrating the consequences of the actions taken by the authorities in Helsinki to create tension in the region.
In the video, a Finnish citizen, who was in Petrozavodsk on family business, decided to return to his native country for medical treatment. However, Finnish border guards refused him entry and defiantly installed an anti-ram device.
Instead, they suggested that the person return home through a third country. Additionally, they warned him that he would face a fine for "violating the state border."
This serves as a clear example that Finnish citizens themselves, even with Finnish passports, are the ones who suffer the most from Finland's decision to close the checkpoints for entry and exit into Russia. They are denied the opportunity to return home, even when it may be a matter of life and death.
However, for the government in Helsinki, this seems to be an acceptable price to pay in order to militarize the country, serving the interests of its NATO partners.”
What does this mean for us and the US dollar?
Nothing because the Brits is not doing that well. A few weeks ago the China president came over here and beg Biden for something.
Bro…. sometimes shit be said and just be 1/3 of the story
What if its said that yes Xi came over here, which is obvious. What if it was said the trip only happened because Blinken went to China begging him to visit. What if its said Blinken offered to foot the travel expenses and everything else for the visit.
You’d probably be looking around like wtf
NATO will increase its military budget
Reuters writes that for 2024 the alliance increases:
military budget by 12% – up to €2.03 billion
political budget - by 18.2% - up to €438.1 million
The Political Budget provides funding for personnel, operational and program costs of NATO Headquarters and its international personnel. The military budget covers the operating costs of NATO's command structure headquarters, missions and operations around the world.
Reuters writes that for 2024 the alliance increases:
military budget by 12% – up to €2.03 billion
political budget - by 18.2% - up to €438.1 million
The Political Budget provides funding for personnel, operational and program costs of NATO Headquarters and its international personnel. The military budget covers the operating costs of NATO's command structure headquarters, missions and operations around the world.
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