southfront--2020-08-10--Ukraine-Like Scenario In Belarus: First Confirmed Death During Protests In Minsk

A protester was killed during clashes with Police in the Belarusian capital of Minsk , the country ’ s interior ministry reported on August 10 evening .
Meanwhile , clashes between security forces and protesters continue in Minsk and several other cities .
According to pro-opposition sources , protesters are trying to build barricades in Minsk .
Media reports claim that the Internet was mostly shut down in Belarus amid protests .
Nonetheless , photos , videos and other data continue surfacing online from the scene of riots .
The Pushkinski suqare is the main place of clashes in Minsk @ @ @ @ @ @ @ petrol bombs were thrown at police officers .
These reports remain unconfirmed .
Pro-opposition sources are also spreading the declaration of the nation-wide strike from August 11 .
If this happens , this will be a notable blow to the country , which is already in the comlicated economic situation .
Apparently , the main ‘ success ’ of the opposition is the August 10 death of the protester .
The main will likely be turned into a sacred sacrifice to fuel street violence and destabilize the country in further .
Sacred sacrifices @ @ @ @ @ @ @ regime changes of the previous years .
In particular , in Ukraine in 2014 , the mass deaths of rioters ( many of them in very suspicious conditions , including repots about sniper fire by foreign mercenaries hired by supporters of the coup ) became the turning point that allowed to increase the violence to the level , when radicals supported by the West overthrew the Yanukovich regime .
In the case of Belarus , the main striking force of protesters is also radical nationalists and neo-liberal-styled Antifa groups that united their forces @ @ @ @ @ @ @ local sources , a large number of the foothold hooligan group MTZ-RIPO ( another name Patriot ) was spotted during the ongoing protests .
In 2014 , a large number of members of this Antifa group participated in the coup in Ukraine .
Some of then even joined the so-called Azov battalion ( mostly consisting of neo-Nazis ) that participated in the conflict with local resistance forces in the region of Donbass .
Therefore , it is not the first time when Belarusian left radicals unite their efforts with their supposed enemies ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is that a similar situation is observed during BLM riots in the United States , where Antifa radicals ( supposedly fighting ‘ fascists ) openly cooperate with black racists motivated by ethnic hatred towards the non-black population .
The riots in Belarus develop amid the increasing media and diplomatic campaign against the Lukashenko government .
Western and even Russian neo-liberal mainstream media are actively covering the situation painting it like the popular apprising against the Lukashenko government .
Various representatives of the Russian ‘ neo-liberal community ’ even gathered to support their ‘ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Belarusian embassy in Moscow .
In fact , the protests are led by the aggressive and well-coordinated minority and does not represent the entire population .
Several Western officials , including US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo , already called the elections de-facto non-legitimate .
If the protests continue and the level of violence grows in the coming days , the Lukashenko government will likely face an increasing pressure on the international scene , including new sanctions , propaganda and clandestine efforts to destabilize the situation in Belarus by the Euro-Atlantic establishment @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that just a few weeks ago Lukashenko was publicly flirting with Washington & Co and making anti-Russian statements .
Nonetheless , his new friends immediately betrayed him .
In these conditions , Russia ( as always ) remains the only guarantor of the Belarusian sovereignty and the power that is ready to assist the Belarusian leadership in its attempts to avoid the wide-scale chaos and the fate of Ukraine 2.0 .
It should be noted that the stability of Belarus is also a matter of national security for Russia .
The Ukraine-like scenario @ @ @ @ @ @ @ facilitate destructive trends in Russia itself and set additional conditions for the destabilization of the country ahead of the 2021 parliament election .
MORE ON THE TOPIC : • Reported Belarus Protester Death Blamed On Police , Despite Video Evidence .
Authorities Deny Any Deaths ( UPDATED )

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A protester was killed during clashes with Police in the Belarusian capital of Minsk, the country’s interior ministry reported on August 10 evening.
“During the confrontation with special forces that deployed to unblock the square, one of the protesters tried to throw an unidentified explosive device at law enforcement officers. It exploded in his hand, the man received injuries incompatible with life,” a press officer of the Interior Ministry, Olga Chemodanova, said.
Meanwhile, clashes between security forces and protesters continue in Minsk and several other cities. According to pro-opposition sources, protesters are trying to build barricades in Minsk.
Media reports claim that the Internet was mostly shut down in Belarus amid protests. Nonetheless, photos, videos and other data continue surfacing online from the scene of riots.
The Pushkinski suqare is the main place of clashes in Minsk. Social media reports claim that several petrol bombs were thrown at police officers. These reports remain unconfirmed.
#Belarus: Video of a motorist running over riot police, police were reportedly attacking people's cars with batons previously. (?@MBKhMedia) pic.twitter.com/QGFyiRJfG8 — Anonymous (@YourAnonCentral) August 10, 2020
Pro-opposition sources are also spreading the declaration of the nation-wide strike from August 11. If this happens, this will be a notable blow to the country, which is already in the comlicated economic situation.
Apparently, the main ‘success’ of the opposition is the August 10 death of the protester. The man will likely be turned into a sacred sacrifice to fuel street violence and destabilize the country in further. Sacred sacrifices are the important fator of most successful regime changes of the previous years. In particular, in Ukraine in 2014, the mass deaths of rioters (many of them in very suspicious conditions, including repots about sniper fire by foreign mercenaries hired by supporters of the coup) became the turning point that allowed to increase the violence to the level, when radicals supported by the West overthrew the Yanukovich regime.
In the case of Belarus, the main striking force of protesters is also radical nationalists and neo-liberal-styled Antifa groups that united their forces against the Lukashenko government. According to local sources, a large number of the foothold hooligan group MTZ-RIPO (another name Patriot) was spotted during the ongoing protests. In 2014, a large number of members of this Antifa group participated in the coup in Ukraine. Some of then even joined the so-called Azov battalion (mostly consisting of neo-Nazis) that participated in the conflict with local resistance forces in the region of Donbass. Therefore, it is not the first time when Belarusian left radicals unite their efforts with their supposed enemies (neo-Nazi groups).
The interesting fact is that a similar situation is observed during BLM riots in the United States, where Antifa radicals (supposedly fighting ‘fascists) openly cooperate with black racists motivated by ethnic hatred towards the non-black population.
The riots in Belarus develop amid the increasing media and diplomatic campaign against the Lukashenko government. Western and even Russian neo-liberal mainstream media are actively covering the situation painting it like the popular apprising against the Lukashenko government. Various representatives of the Russian ‘neo-liberal community’ even gathered to support their ‘democratic brothers’ in the front of the Belarusian embassy in Moscow. In fact, the protests are led by the aggressive and well-coordinated minority and does not represent the entire population.
Several Western officials, including US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, already called the elections de-facto non-legitimate. If the protests continue and the level of violence grows in the coming days, the Lukashenko government will likely face an increasing pressure on the international scene, including new sanctions, propaganda and clandestine efforts to destabilize the situation in Belarus by the Euro-Atlantic establishment.
The irony of the situation is that just a few weeks ago Lukashenko was publicly flirting with Washington & Co and making anti-Russian statements. Nonetheless, his new friends immediately betrayed him. In these conditions, Russia (as always) remains the only guarantor of the Belarusian sovereignty and the power that is ready to assist the Belarusian leadership in its attempts to avoid the wide-scale chaos and the fate of Ukraine 2.0. It should be noted that the stability of Belarus is also a matter of national security for Russia. The Ukraine-like scenario in Belarus will have all chances to facilitate destructive trends in Russia itself and set additional conditions for the destabilization of the country ahead of the 2021 parliament election.
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southfront--2020-08-10--Higuard 6×6 MRAP Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle (Infographics)

Click to see the full-size image The HIGUARD is a MRAP ( Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected ) vehicle designed and manufactured @ @ @ @ @ Trucks Defense .
MORE ON THE TOPIC : • Network Of NATO Centres Of Excellence @ @ @ @ @ ( Infographics )

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The HIGUARD is a MRAP (Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected) vehicle designed and manufactured by France’s Renault Trucks Defense.
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southfront--2020-08-10--Chaos In Lebanon Marked Start Of New Round Of Israeli-Iranian Standoff

The explosion in the port of Beirut in early August that caused thousands of casualties became a trigger point for the further development of the already existing crisis in Lebanon .
In the following week days after the August 4 explosion , a series of large-scale protests took place in Beirut .
Protesters clashed with police , hung cardboard figures of Lebanese politicians , like President Michel Aoun and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah , and stormed government buildings , including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs , the Ministry of the Economy , the Ministry of the Environment , the Association @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Water .
As of August 10 , a few dozen people have already been injured and protests continue .
A number of Lebanese politicians , who are known to be close to the West , announced their resignation from the country ’ s Parliament .
The Lebanese Minister of Information , Manal Abdel Samad , also resigned along with the Environment Minister Damianus Qitar .
According to the Lebanese media , a number of other ministers are planning to announce their resignation soon .
The Lebanese government is about to end its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ protests received wide coverage in Israeli media , which painted the crisis as a ‘ popular resistance ’ against Hezbollah and political parties that cooperate with it .
Various pro-Israeli sources actively speculate that the entire tragedy was likely caused due to the ‘ destructive Hezbollah actions ’ if not a Hezbollah weapon depot explosion .
The Hezbollah political wing is an official political party in Lebanon and its Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc has 13 seats .
The movement itself through its social , economic and security programs has strong popular support @ @ @ @ @ @ @ known to be allies of the U.S. expectedly received less coverage .
The deepening crisis in Lebanon also caused a notable reaction on the international level , in particular with the United States and France actively offering their assistance .
US President Donald Trump , who already declared that the explosion may have been an attack , was especially active in calling about the need to find the party behind the Beirut explosions .
Taking into account the general course of the Trump administration aimed at the confrontation with the Iranian-led bloc in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to Israel , it ’ s easy to suggest whom the White House will find guilty in the crisis .
At the same time , the Israeli Defense Forces ( IDF ) continued their military buildup on the contact line with southern Lebanon and in the occupied area of Syria ’ s Golan Heights .
On August 9 , Lt. Gen. Aviv Kochavi , Chief of the General Staff of the IDF , came with new accusations against Iran claiming that the shelling of Israeli forces on the separation line with the Syrians @ @ @ @ @ @ @ speech , Lt. Gen. Kochavi set the Israeli goals in what he called the “ battle between wars ” as follows : • Preventing the “ radical axis ” [ Iran and its allies ] from establishing a presence in Syria .
• Denying Israel ’ s enemies on all fronts , especially in the north , from obtaining precision-guided missiles and munitions .
IDF troops in northern Israel have been on a high alert since July 20 , when a series of Israeli strikes on the Syrian capital , Damascus , killed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
In fact , the Beirut port explosions became a gift for the Israeli political leadership and its supporters giving them a chance to use the crisis to achieve their goals in Lebanon .
The observed diplomatic and media activity demonstrates that Tel Aviv and Washington have already started a campaign to undermine positions of Hezbollah , at least on the political level , and fuel tensions between supporters of the group and the relatively pro-Western part of the population .
Clandestine actions to fuel chaos in Lebanon are likely to follow .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ that in the case of success , it may lead to a new cycle of violence and civilian casualties in Lebanon , first of all in Beirut and may even trigger the resumption of clashes on the Lebanese-Israeli contact line .
Nonetheless , this is the price that the pro-Israel bloc is ready to pay to achieve its political goals and deny the Lebanese the ability to protect its national sovereignty from foreign actors in any foreseeable future .

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The explosion in the port of Beirut in early August that caused thousands of casualties became a trigger point for the further development of the already existing crisis in Lebanon.
In the following week days after the August 4 explosion, a series of large-scale protests took place in Beirut. Protesters clashed with police, hung cardboard figures of Lebanese politicians, like President Michel Aoun and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, and stormed government buildings, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of the Economy, the Ministry of the Environment, the Association of Banks and the Ministry of Energy and Water. As of August 10, a few dozen people have already been injured and protests continue.
A number of Lebanese politicians, who are known to be close to the West, announced their resignation from the country’s Parliament. The Lebanese Minister of Information, Manal Abdel Samad, also resigned along with the Environment Minister Damianus Qitar. According to the Lebanese media, a number of other ministers are planning to announce their resignation soon. The Lebanese government is about to end its existence in its current form.
The protests received wide coverage in Israeli media, which painted the crisis as a ‘popular resistance’ against Hezbollah and political parties that cooperate with it. Various pro-Israeli sources actively speculate that the entire tragedy was likely caused due to the ‘destructive Hezbollah actions’ if not a Hezbollah weapon depot explosion. The Hezbollah political wing is an official political party in Lebanon and its Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc has 13 seats. The movement itself through its social, economic and security programs has strong popular support across the country. Slogans and chants known to be allies of the U.S. expectedly received less coverage.
The deepening crisis in Lebanon also caused a notable reaction on the international level, in particular with the United States and France actively offering their assistance. US President Donald Trump, who already declared that the explosion may have been an attack, was especially active in calling about the need to find the party behind the Beirut explosions. Taking into account the general course of the Trump administration aimed at the confrontation with the Iranian-led bloc in the Middle East and its unconditional support to Israel, it’s easy to suggest whom the White House will find guilty in the crisis.
At the same time, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) continued their military buildup on the contact line with southern Lebanon and in the occupied area of Syria’s Golan Heights. On August 9, Lt. Gen. Aviv Kochavi, Chief of the General Staff of the IDF, came with new accusations against Iran claiming that the shelling of Israeli forces on the separation line with the Syrians was linked with Iran. In his speech, Lt. Gen. Kochavi set the Israeli goals in what he called the “battle between wars” as follows:
The Iranian nuclear program. Preventing the “radical axis” [Iran and its allies] from establishing a presence in Syria. Denying Israel’s enemies on all fronts, especially in the north, from obtaining precision-guided missiles and munitions.
IDF troops in northern Israel have been on a high alert since July 20, when a series of Israeli strikes on the Syrian capital, Damascus, killed a fighter of Lebanon’s Hezbollah.
In fact, the Beirut port explosions became a gift for the Israeli political leadership and its supporters giving them a chance to use the crisis to achieve their goals in Lebanon. The observed diplomatic and media activity demonstrates that Tel Aviv and Washington have already started a campaign to undermine positions of Hezbollah, at least on the political level, and fuel tensions between supporters of the group and the relatively pro-Western part of the population. Clandestine actions to fuel chaos in Lebanon are likely to follow.
The main problem of this approach is that in the case of success, it may lead to a new cycle of violence and civilian casualties in Lebanon, first of all in Beirut and may even trigger the resumption of clashes on the Lebanese-Israeli contact line. Nonetheless, this is the price that the pro-Israel bloc is ready to pay to achieve its political goals and deny the Lebanese the ability to protect its national sovereignty from foreign actors in any foreseeable future.
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southfront--2020-08-10--Lights, Camera, Action: Staging Of Protests in Belarus (Videos)

In Belarus presidential elections were held .
According to the Central Election Committee , the turnout was quite high and amounted to about 84 % of the population .
The results of the exit poll confirm the victory of the current President of Belarus , Alexander Lukashenko .
The election campaign was marked by unprecedented administrative pressure and a huge number of provocations .
Shortly before the elections in Minsk were held large-scale protests in support of the main opponent of A. Lukashenko , Svetlana Tikhanovskaya .
Also , the results of the elections caused disapproval among the population .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ opposition electorate , such a high percentage of those who voted for A. Lukashenko is suspicious .
Svetlana Tikhonovskaya said that she considers herself the winner of the presidential election in Belarus , and her team demanded the peaceful transfer of power to the elected head of state .
However , the election day in Belarus was not characterized by calm .
After their completion , violent protests began on the streets .
There are more and more videos on the Internet showing more and more large-scale confrontations with special police units involved @ @ @ @ @ @ @ channels claim that hundreds of protesters took to the streets .
At the same time , after analyzing of some videos , it becomes clear that many of them are staged stories .
For example , one of the first videos appeared on the Internet , which was titled as ” In Minsk , the police started detaining people .
The surrounding people rushed to fight them off.
» The video shows a group of police officers consisting of about 9 people .
Initially , they were forced to disperse in order to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at this moment that allegedly “ surrounding people ” began to protect the protesters from the riot police .
Suspicions about the authenticity of the events on the video are primarily caused by the content of those “ passers-by ” , consisting exclusively of strong young men , most likely having no relation to the active electorate .
With shouts of “ let ’ s go at them !
” , “ Jackals !
” about 20 people come on stage .
As a result , about 20 men attack 9 police officers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lasts about 10 seconds , because most likely the attackers immediately ran away , for not to be detained .
Special praise is due to the work of the operator , who also seems to be not just a casual viewer , and has good skills with the camera .
It is also heard on the video .
that the exclamations of ” protestors ” containing obscene language were carefully muted .
The slightest analysis of the video allows to conclude that everything was prepared , from the situation itself to the work @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the police were provoked at a certain time and in the right place , where they were already waiting with cameras and prepared “ passers-by ” , ready to simulate a collision .
Similar suspicions are aroused by another video that has been widely distributed on social networks .
The video shows how provocateurs tear off their t-shirts and , on the orders of their supervisor , jump off and start provoking the police .
The supervisor himself at this time , having given the order , tried to move away , so @ @ @ @ @ @ @ poisons during the clashes .
It can be seen that about 40 people participated in the production , and they were arranged in two rows so that their number visually seemed larger .
For this purpose , the desired shooting angle is also selected .
Strangely , the video ends a few seconds after the collision , and another one shows the entrance to a shopping center located nearby .
It appears that a group of protesters were ordered to run away and hide in the shopping center , which is an ideal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lost in the crowd .
The video also shows the few people who the police managed to catch up and detain .
Such orchestrated situations are not uncommon and are conducted by competent social engineers .
At the same time , the main task of such companies is to distribute the video as widely as possible on information platforms , in social networks and in the media .
Apparently , the provocative fake videos did their job , and hundreds of people took to the streets of Minsk .
Various information sources claimed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the head of the Investigative Committee of Belarus , I. Noskevich , mass unrest was observed both in Minsk and in other regions of the country .
As a result of illegal actions , dozens of policemen were injured .
There are also victims among the protesters .
Participants of the riots used garbage containers , benches , sticks , cobblestones , fragments of paving slabs , glass bottles , as well as flammable liquids , Police officers used stun grenades and tear gas .
There was the news about the deaths @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be officially confirmed .
Most of the videos published on election day arouse suspicion .
They have common features : they are quite short and in most cases they do not show the general plan , but only a local image .
In almost all the videos , except for the general procession of protesters , we see only young strong men who act in a fairly organized manner .
The events in Minsk are very similar to what happened in Ukraine in 2014 .
There is manipulation of the position of a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with the results of the elections in order to organize mass riots and destabilize the situation in the country .
However , the situations in two countries differ in several ways .
In Belarus there are no prerequisites for the formation of an aggressive sub-ethnic group similar to the representatives of Western Ukraine .
In contrast to Ukraine , nationalist movements , which could become the main force for the revolution , are comparatively inactive in Belarus .
In order to carry out a coup , the assistance of at least of a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ forces is required .
If the Security Council supported the revolution in Ukraine , at the moment the Security Committee ’ s support for the protesters in Belarus seems unlikely .
Thus , despite the efforts of social engineers who actively feed the revolutionary movement , a repeat of the “ Maidan ” in Belarus seems unlikely .
However , a long term civil confrontation based on the discontent of some voters and fueled from the outside is quite likely .
MORE ON THE TOPIC : • Turkey Resumed Drilling In Eastern Mediterranean @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Promise

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In Belarus presidential elections were held. According to the Central Election Committee, the turnout was quite high and amounted to about 84% of the population. The results of the exit poll confirm the victory of the current President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko.
The election campaign was marked by unprecedented administrative pressure and a huge number of provocations. Shortly before the elections in Minsk were held large-scale protests in support of the main opponent of A. Lukashenko, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya. Also, the results of the elections caused disapproval among the population. Given the scale of mobilization of the opposition electorate, such a high percentage of those who voted for A. Lukashenko is suspicious. Svetlana Tikhonovskaya said that she considers herself the winner of the presidential election in Belarus, and her team demanded the peaceful transfer of power to the elected head of state.
“The government does not hear us, it is completely detached from the people, but I must repeat that we are for peaceful changes. And the authorities should now think about how to transfer this power in a peaceful way, because at the moment they have only one way — violence against peaceful Belarusians, ” Tihanovskaya said.
However, the election day in Belarus was not characterized by calm. After their completion, violent protests began on the streets. There are more and more videos on the Internet showing more and more large-scale confrontations with special police units involved in ensuring public order. Various news channels claim that hundreds of protesters took to the streets. At the same time, after analyzing of some videos, it becomes clear that many of them are staged stories.
For example, one of the first videos appeared on the Internet, which was titled as ” In Minsk, the police started detaining people. The surrounding people rushed to fight them off.»
В Минске ОМОН начал задерживать людей. Окружающие бросились их отбивать. pic.twitter.com/iP09NhID61 — TUT.BY (@tutby) August 9, 2020
The video shows a group of police officers consisting of about 9 people. Initially, they were forced to disperse in order to detain several people, and it was at this moment that allegedly “surrounding people” began to protect the protesters from the riot police.
Suspicions about the authenticity of the events on the video are primarily caused by the content of those “passers-by”, consisting exclusively of strong young men, most likely having no relation to the active electorate. With shouts of “let’s go at them!”, “Jackals!” about 20 people come on stage. As a result, about 20 men attack 9 police officers. The collision itself in the video lasts about 10 seconds, because most likely the attackers immediately ran away, for not to be detained.
Special praise is due to the work of the operator, who also seems to be not just a casual viewer, and has good skills with the camera. It is also heard on the video. that the exclamations of” protestors ” containing obscene language were carefully muted.
The slightest analysis of the video allows to conclude that everything was prepared, from the situation itself to the work of the video operator. Apparently, the police were provoked at a certain time and in the right place, where they were already waiting with cameras and prepared “passers-by”, ready to simulate a collision.
Similar suspicions are aroused by another video that has been widely distributed on social networks.
The video shows how provocateurs tear off their t-shirts and, on the orders of their supervisor, jump off and start provoking the police. The supervisor himself at this time, having given the order, tried to move away, so as not to be in the first poisons during the clashes. It can be seen that about 40 people participated in the production, and they were arranged in two rows so that their number visually seemed larger. For this purpose, the desired shooting angle is also selected.
Strangely, the video ends a few seconds after the collision, and another one shows the entrance to a shopping center located nearby. It appears that a group of protesters were ordered to run away and hide in the shopping center, which is an ideal escape route where they can easily get lost in the crowd. The video also shows the few people who the police managed to catch up and detain.
Such orchestrated situations are not uncommon and are conducted by competent social engineers. At the same time, the main task of such companies is to distribute the video as widely as possible on information platforms, in social networks and in the media.
Apparently, the provocative fake videos did their job, and hundreds of people took to the streets of Minsk. Various information sources claimed hundreds of thousands of protesters.
According to the head of the Investigative Committee of Belarus, I. Noskevich, mass unrest was observed both in Minsk and in other regions of the country. As a result of illegal actions, dozens of policemen were injured. There are also victims among the protesters. Participants of the riots used garbage containers, benches, sticks, cobblestones, fragments of paving slabs, glass bottles, as well as flammable liquids, Police officers used stun grenades and tear gas. There was the news about the deaths among the protestors that are still to be officially confirmed.
Most of the videos published on election day arouse suspicion. They have common features: they are quite short and in most cases they do not show the general plan, but only a local image. In almost all the videos, except for the general procession of protesters, we see only young strong men who act in a fairly organized manner.
The events in Minsk are very similar to what happened in Ukraine in 2014. There is manipulation of the position of a minority of the population that is dissatisfied with the results of the elections in order to organize mass riots and destabilize the situation in the country. However, the situations in two countries differ in several ways. In Belarus there are no prerequisites for the formation of an aggressive sub-ethnic group similar to the representatives of Western Ukraine. In contrast to Ukraine, nationalist movements, which could become the main force for the revolution, are comparatively inactive in Belarus. In order to carry out a coup, the assistance of at least of a part of the state’s military forces is required. If the Security Council supported the revolution in Ukraine, at the moment the Security Committee’s support for the protesters in Belarus seems unlikely. Thus, despite the efforts of social engineers who actively feed the revolutionary movement, a repeat of the “Maidan” in Belarus seems unlikely. However, a long term civil confrontation based on the discontent of some voters and fueled from the outside is quite likely.
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southfront--2020-08-10--Military Situation In Iraq On August 10, 2020 (Map Update)

Click to see the full-size image A brief overview of the recent developments in Iraq : • The Saraya Thorat @ @ @ @ @ its forces had carried out an IED attack on a convoy of US-led coalition on @ @ @ @ @ 2 PMU members were injured in an IED attack near Lake Hamrin ; • Iraqi @ @ @ @ @ operation in the Al-Kour Valley near the town of Daquq ; • The 313th Brigade @ @ @ @ @ a security operation against ISIS cells west of Samarra .
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A brief overview of the recent developments in Iraq:
The Saraya Thorat Al-Ashrin Al-Thaniyah group declared that its forces had carried out an IED attack on a convoy of US-led coalition on the Nasiriyah highway;
2 PMU members were injured in an IED attack near Lake Hamrin;
Iraqi forces carried out a security operation in the Al-Kour Valley near the town of Daquq;
The 313th Brigade of the PMU carried out a security operation against ISIS cells west of Samarra.
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southfront--2020-08-10--Military Situation In Yemen On August 10, 2020 (Map Update)

a big part of the territory is surrounded by Ansar Allah now .
even the little route that you can @ @ @ @ @ claimed to be taken but not shown in the map .
all this meaning the @ @ @ @ @ are now left alone without any saudi coalition support .
they ’ re done for @ @ @ @

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A brief overview of the recent developments in Yemen:
Saudi-led coalition warplanes conducted 2 airstrikes on the Boqa area;
3 Ethiopian immigrants were killed as a result of artillery shelling by Saudi-led forces in Aqabat Al-Rakheem in the Mahliya District;
The Liaison and Coordination Officers’ Operations Room (loyal to Ansar Allah) reported 86 ceasefire violations in al-Hudaydah over the past 24 hours;
Ansar Allah and its allied tribes launched an operation against ISIS and al-Qaeda forces in the northwest of Baydha province, capturing several points such as Nofan mountain, Hatab and Khabza villages.
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southfront--2020-08-10--Chaos In Chicago: Bridges Raised To Prevent Gun-Toting Looters Getting Downtown

Hundreds of ‘ mostly peaceful protesters ’ swept through the Magnificent Mile and other parts of downtown Chicago early Monday , smashing windows , looting stores , confronting police and at one point exchanging gunfire with officers , authorities said .
As The Chicago Tribune reports , officers had stopped several people on Lake Street near Michigan Avenue when shots were fired from a passing car around 4:30 a.m. , nearly five hours into the widespread vandalism , according to police spokesman Tom Ahern .
No officers were shot but a squad car was hit , he said .
It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gunman ’ s car was shot .
Police made “ a lot of arrests ” and recovered at least one gun , officials said .
And that escalation , as Summit News ’ Paul Joseph Watson details , prompted Chicago authorities took the decision to raise all major bridges in an effort to prevent looters reaching the downtown area after a night of chaos .
Luxury department stores were ransacked as hundreds of looters caused mayhem in response to the police shooting of an armed suspect in Englewood .
Police sent to respond @ @ @ @ @ @ @ prompting authorities to raise major bridges in order to keep more people out of the area .
“ All bridges are being raised along the river throughout The Loop , ” reports CBS Chicago .
“ Chicago ’ s Office of Emergency Management announced street closures throughout areas in the Magnificent Mile , Gold Coast and South Loop.
” Numerous bus and train services have also been suspended , while large areas of downtown Chicago are also closed .
Bridges were previously raised last month in an effort to keep Black Lives Matter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but the call to do so this time around appears to have come too late .

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Originally appeared at ZeroHedge
Hundreds of ‘mostly peaceful protesters’ swept through the Magnificent Mile and other parts of downtown Chicago early Monday, smashing windows, looting stores, confronting police and at one point exchanging gunfire with officers, authorities said.
As The Chicago Tribune reports, officers had stopped several people on Lake Street near Michigan Avenue when shots were fired from a passing car around 4:30 a.m., nearly five hours into the widespread vandalism, according to police spokesman Tom Ahern.
There’s a caravan of dozens of cars filled with #Looters hitting Chicago’s luxury store fronts. pic.twitter.com/uIqucbEIU9 — Askdoctorindia (@askdoctorindia) August 10, 2020
No officers were shot but a squad car was hit, he said. It was not known if anyone in the gunman’s car was shot.
Police made “a lot of arrests” and recovered at least one gun, officials said.
And that escalation, as Summit News’ Paul Joseph Watson details, prompted Chicago authorities took the decision to raise all major bridges in an effort to prevent looters reaching the downtown area after a night of chaos.
Luxury department stores were ransacked as hundreds of looters caused mayhem in response to the police shooting of an armed suspect in Englewood.
Police sent to respond to the looting were physically attacked, prompting authorities to raise major bridges in order to keep more people out of the area.
“All bridges are being raised along the river throughout The Loop,” reports CBS Chicago. “Chicago’s Office of Emergency Management announced street closures throughout areas in the Magnificent Mile, Gold Coast and South Loop.”
Numerous bus and train services have also been suspended, while large areas of downtown Chicago are also closed.
Bridges were previously raised last month in an effort to keep Black Lives Matter protesters away from the business district, but the call to do so this time around appears to have come too late.
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southfront--2020-08-10--Reported Belarus Protester Death Blamed On Police, Despite Video Evidence. Authorities Deny Any Deat

Reported Belarus Protester Death Blamed On Police, Despite Video Evidence. Authorities Deny Any Deaths (UPDATED)

On August 10th , Belarus ’ central election commission announced that all ballots had been counted .
President Alexander Lukashenko won a 6th term , with 80.23 % of the vote , while his main opposition challenger Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya had 9.9 % .
On August 9th , election day , there were protests throughout the country , with clashes between protesters and police throughout .
Videos on social media have shown extensive violent clashes between protesters and the security forces , with tear gas , rubber bullets , flashbang grenades and water cannon used to try and disperse crowds .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ even died , and he was allegedly killed by authorities .
He attempted to jump on a moving vehicle , failed to do so , fell , hit his head and died as a result of the hit .
However , MSM reports cite the pro-Western Vyasna Human Rights Center said the young male protester suffered a traumatic head injury when he was hit by a police vehicle and medics were unable to save him .
Despite the video that very obviously proves otherwise .
The video below is supposedly showing the incident @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deaths during the protests .
According to the ministry , 39 police officers and 50 protesters were injured in the clashes .
Nonetheless , nobody was killed .
Later , the supposedly killed civilian , Evgeny Zaichkin , was contacted by journalists and appeared to be alive .
He returned to the coutnry ’ s capital Minsk only 4 months ago .
Before this , he was working in Poland and Lithuania .
Fake reports about the death during the protests were likely disseminated in an attempt to destabilize the situation in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ some 3,000 people for taking part in the unauthorized gatherings , the interior ministry said , accusing some protesters of sparking clashes with police .
The ministry said in a statement that 1,000 of the detentions were in the capital Minsk and the rest in other parts of the country .
It said protesters in Minsk had lit flares , erected barricades and thrown objects at police .
Fifty civilians and 39 police officers were injured in clashes in the capital , it said , denying there were any deaths .
Attempting to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ won 9.9 % of the vote Svetlana Tikhanovskaya rejected the results and demanded authorities transfer power to the opposition .
She also denounced authorities for the crackdown , saying police had used “ disproportionate measures ” against protesters and called disruptions to the internet “ a crime.
” There were also reports of journalists being assaulted .
After voting on August 9th , Lukashenko denied imposing repressive measures as “ fake news or far-fetched accusations ” .
Currently , Belarus is being targeted by a wide-scale media and diplomatic campaign by Euro-Atlantic structures @ @ @ @ @ @ @ there .
This campaign is supported by a small , but agressive group of supporters of the so-called ‘ neo-liberal ’ values and radical nationalists .
Nonetheless , Minsk has already demonstrated that it is not going to tolerate attempts to seize the power by pro-Western forces through street violence and coup attempts .
MORE ON THE TOPIC :

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On August 10th, Belarus’ central election commission announced that all ballots had been counted.
President Alexander Lukashenko won a 6th term, with 80.23% of the vote, while his main opposition challenger Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya had 9.9%.
On August 9th, election day, there were protests throughout the country, with clashes between protesters and police throughout.
Videos on social media have shown extensive violent clashes between protesters and the security forces, with tear gas, rubber bullets, flashbang grenades and water cannon used to try and disperse crowds.
According to pro-opposition sources, a protester even died, and he was allegedly killed by authorities.
He attempted to jump on a moving vehicle, failed to do so, fell, hit his head and died as a result of the hit. However, MSM reports cite the pro-Western Vyasna Human Rights Center said the young male protester suffered a traumatic head injury when he was hit by a police vehicle and medics were unable to save him.
Despite the video that very obviously proves otherwise.
The video below is supposedly showing the incident:
The Belarusian Interior Ministry denied any deaths during the protests. According to the ministry, 39 police officers and 50 protesters were injured in the clashes. Nonetheless, nobody was killed. Later, the supposedly killed civilian, Evgeny Zaichkin, was contacted by journalists and appeared to be alive. He returned to the coutnry’s capital Minsk only 4 months ago. Before this, he was working in Poland and Lithuania. Fake reports about the death during the protests were likely disseminated in an attempt to destabilize the situation in the country.
Police in Belarus briefly detained some 3,000 people for taking part in the unauthorized gatherings, the interior ministry said, accusing some protesters of sparking clashes with police.
The ministry said in a statement that 1,000 of the detentions were in the capital Minsk and the rest in other parts of the country.
It said protesters in Minsk had lit flares, erected barricades and thrown objects at police. Fifty civilians and 39 police officers were injured in clashes in the capital, it said, denying there were any deaths.
Attempting to ride the protesters, opposition figure that won 9.9% of the vote Svetlana Tikhanovskaya rejected the results and demanded authorities transfer power to the opposition.
“Yesterday the voters made their choice but the authorities did not hear us, they have broken with the people,” she told a news conference.
She also denounced authorities for the crackdown, saying police had used “disproportionate measures” against protesters and called disruptions to the internet “a crime.”
There were also reports of journalists being assaulted.
At least one journalist from @meduzaproject and @AP photographer were beaten. Daily Storm and @Belsat_TV journalists were detained. Police drones were filming the area at night. They literally followed people who tried to evacuate #Belarus — Hanna Liubakova (@HannaLiubakova) August 10, 2020
After voting on August 9th, Lukashenko denied imposing repressive measures as “fake news or far-fetched accusations”.
Currently, Belarus is being targeted by a wide-scale media and diplomatic campaign by Euro-Atlantic structures in an attempt to destabilize the situation there. This campaign is supported by a small, but agressive group of supporters of the so-called ‘neo-liberal’ values and radical nationalists. Nonetheless, Minsk has already demonstrated that it is not going to tolerate attempts to seize the power by pro-Western forces through street violence and coup attempts.
MORE ON THE TOPIC:
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southfront--2020-08-11--Hiroshima at 75. The Doomsday Clock and the Ongoing Threat of “Atomic Horror”

By Michael Welch , Prof Michel Chossudovsky , and Greg Mitchell ; Originally appeared at Global Research “ Not a particular country , not a particular city , and not a particular people .
The crux of the matter is whether total war in its present form is justifiable , even when it serves a just purpose .
Does it not have material and spiritual evil as its consequences which far exceed whatever good might result ?
When will our moralists give us an answer to this question ?
” The two state of the art weapons released over the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ most devastating blasts of all time .
According to the best estimates of anti-nuclear weapons scientists , anywhere from 110,000 to 210,000 people died in the twin holocausts .
Two thirds of the city of Hiroshima were wiped out in a single attack , the equivalent of 15,000 tons of TNT .
[ 2 ] These massive mushroom clouds would go on to become a symbol of the fate of humanity encapsulated in the threat of atomic horror .
For all my life , I have contemplated the prospects of nuclear incineration and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leaders get caught up in a tragic misstep .
What has been the careful course of a wizened populace after 75 years of careful planning ?
On January 23 of this year , the doomsday clock , created by the Bulletin of Atomic Scientist , announced the clock had revved up to 100 seconds before midnight .
That is an all time record in the history of the time piece !
Do the memories of the devastating attacks of Aug 6 and Aug 9 , 1945 have some process of ever re-igniting the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and reversing the tide of Nuclear Armageddon ?
This is a subject we will explore on this special anniversary episode of the Global Research News Hour .
Our first guest is renowned academic and writer Professor Michel Chossudovsky .
In the first half hour , he brings us up to date on how the U.S. has re-ignited interest in once again turning bombs like the ones dropped over Hiroshima and Nagasaki into “ ready for use ” weapons in the arsenal of conventional warfare .
Our second guest , Greg Mitchell , comes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ He elaborates on how early information about the nuclear warfare in Japan was concealed , and how a new blockbuster release from Hollywood served to falsify the news from the battlefields .
Professor Michel Chossudovsky is a professor of economics ( emeritus ) at the University of Ottawa , and the Founder and Editor of the Centre for Research on Globalization .
He is the award-winning author of numerous articles and of eleven books including Towards a World War III Scenario : The Dangers of Nuclear War ( 2012 ) and The Globalization @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Long War ” against Humanity ( 2015 ) .
Greg Mitchell is an author and journalist .
He was editor of the magazine Nuclear Times and has become an outspoken expert and the role and build up of nuclear arms in Japan .
His books include Hiroshima in America : Fifty Years of Denial ( co-written by Robert J Lifton , 1995 ) , Atomic Cover-up : Two U.S .
Soldiers , Hiroshima & Nagasaki , and The Greatest Movie Never Made ( 2011 ) , and his latest : The Beginning or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb ( 2020 ) .

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By Michael Welch, Prof Michel Chossudovsky, and Greg Mitchell; Originally appeared at Global Research
“Not a particular country, not a particular city, and not a particular people.
The crux of the matter is whether total war in its present form is justifiable, even when it serves a just purpose. Does it not have material and spiritual evil as its consequences which far exceed whatever good might result? When will our moralists give us an answer to this question?”
John Hersey, Hiroshima [1]
The two state of the art weapons released over the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki constituted the most devastating blasts of all time.
According to the best estimates of anti-nuclear weapons scientists, anywhere from 110,000 to 210,000 people died in the twin holocausts. Two thirds of the city of Hiroshima were wiped out in a single attack, the equivalent of 15,000 tons of TNT. [2]
These massive mushroom clouds would go on to become a symbol of the fate of humanity encapsulated in the threat of atomic horror. For all my life, I have contemplated the prospects of nuclear incineration and the aftermath that would follow if our leaders get caught up in a tragic misstep.
What has been the careful course of a wizened populace after 75 years of careful planning?
On January 23 of this year, the doomsday clock, created by the Bulletin of Atomic Scientist, announced the clock had revved up to 100 seconds before midnight. That is an all time record in the history of the time piece! Do the memories of the devastating attacks of Aug 6 and Aug 9, 1945 have some process of ever re-igniting the imaginations of a new generation of civilians and reversing the tide of Nuclear Armageddon? This is a subject we will explore on this special anniversary episode of the Global Research News Hour.
Our first guest is renowned academic and writer Professor Michel Chossudovsky. In the first half hour, he brings us up to date on how the U.S. has re-ignited interest in once again turning bombs like the ones dropped over Hiroshima and Nagasaki into “ready for use” weapons in the arsenal of conventional warfare.
Our second guest, Greg Mitchell, comes along in our second half hour. He elaborates on how early information about the nuclear warfare in Japan was concealed, and how a new blockbuster release from Hollywood served to falsify the news from the battlefields.
Professor Michel Chossudovsky is a professor of economics (emeritus) at the University of Ottawa, and the Founder and Editor of the Centre for Research on Globalization. He is the award-winning author of numerous articles and of eleven books including Towards a World War III Scenario: The Dangers of Nuclear War (2012) and The Globalization of War: America’s “Long War” against Humanity (2015).
Greg Mitchell is an author and journalist. He was editor of the magazine Nuclear Times and has become an outspoken expert and the role and build up of nuclear arms in Japan. His books include Hiroshima in America: Fifty Years of Denial (co-written by Robert J Lifton, 1995) , Atomic Cover-up: Two U.S. Soldiers, Hiroshima & Nagasaki, and The Greatest Movie Never Made (2011), and his latest: The Beginning or the End: How Hollywood—and America—Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (2020).
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southfront--2020-08-11--The Saker: “Putin And Russia Are Facing A Very Serious Crisis In Belarus”

Written by The Saker ; Originally appeared at The Unz Review Some of my longtime readers might have noticed that I rarely ( if ever ! )
wrote about Belarus or President Lukashenko .
As always with the blog , there is a reason for why I do mention something and no less a reason why I do not mention something .
In the case of Belarus or Lukashenko , my reason for not writing about them was the exactly why I never wrote about the Ukraine before 2013 : I was both uninspired and mostly disgusted with what I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ did not feel strongly enough to write about it .
That changed for the Ukraine with the Euromaidan .
Now the events in Belarus force me to address this very unpleasant topic : Belarus is facing a complex and dangerous situation which might well result in a major crisis inside Belarus and even a loss of sovereignty .
But first , before we look into what just happened , let me begin with a quick “ mini-primer ” about Belarus .
Here is what I think everybody ought to know about this country @ @ @ @ @ @ @ creation , even more artificial than the Ukraine .
At least in the Ukraine there were “ westerners ” ( Galicians ) who truly were not Russians at all ( you can think of them as the “ real Ukrainians ” if you want ) and whose hatred for everything Russian was every bit as rabid as the one of the of Rwanda .
There is no meaningful equivalent to the Banderites in Belarus .
• Lukashnko was no more pro-Russian than Ianukovich .
This is crucial .
Lukashenko was always pro-Lukashenko , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Lukashenko like to say that Belarus is the only real Russian ally .
This is false .
Technically , Russia and Belarus are supranational union states .
However , it is true that Lukashenko tried to use the historical identity between the Russian and Belarusian people to demand that Russia help him out over and over and over again .
And until recently , Russia did .
• As a country , Belarus is a quasi perfect police state with an extremely competent and feared KGB ( yes , in Belarus they kept @ @ @ @ @ @ @ everybody .
This is also crucial for reasons I will explain below .
• As for the Kremlin , it always wanted to foster a reunification with Belarus but this process was never fully completed due to regular problems , and even crises , between Moscow and Minsk .
Russia poured in immense sums of money to keep the Belarusian society from crashing .
• Finally , Belarus is really a poor country with very limited resources .
For Russia , however , Belarus is a crucial military ally , one which plays @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
If the US and NATO were successful in taking control of the country , this will be a major strategic threat for the Russian security .
These are just a few pointers to compare and contrast Belarus with the Ukraine .
Now let me summarize what just happened .
The Belarusian authorities have declared that “ hundreds ” of men ( supposedly Russians ) have been sent to Belarus with nefarious intentions .
Lukashenko has since officially confirmed that he got this info from the Ukrainian SBU .
The men themselves were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the “ Wagner ” PMC , subversives , etc .
and their goals were described as killing Lukashenko , triggering a new “ maidan ” in Belarus , create chaos , etc .
Frankly , the Belarusian authorities never got their story straight and , frankly again , this really makes no difference at all .
Here are two things which I consider as indisputable : • Russia would never even consider using force or illegal covert operations against Lukashenko and/or Belarus • The Belarusian KGB knows everything of any importance taking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that argument # 2 very much supports argument # 1 .
Whatever may be the case , it appeared that a group of Russian security guards had been recruited by a Belarusian firm to provide security in various countries ( Sudan and Venezuela is often named ) .
They traveled to Belarus and planned to fly out of Minsk for their final destinations .
They were delayed , apparently deliberately , then they missed their flight and were told to go and rest at a hotel which happened to be located not far @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the middle of the night , a KGB swat team moved in with flash-bang grenades and guns drawn and brutally arrested everybody in spite of the fact that none of the sleepy Russians offered any kind of resistance .
No weapons of any kind were found , no evidence of any covert plans either , but the authorities declared that since these men were not drinking or harassing waitresses and since they kept to themselves , this was a clear proof that they were on a secret mission ( I am not joking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is absolute and utter nonsense and we should not get distracted by the minutia of this clearly fabricated pretext .
Here is what really happened .
It now appears that the Ukrainian secret service SBU ( which does nothing without Uncle Sam ’ s approval ) mounted a complex covert operation to try to get Belarus and Russia into a confrontation .
The entire operation , including recruitment , purchase of airline tickets , etc was , in fact , run from the Ukraine .
This was also the biggest mistake the Ukies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ actions well enough and it took the Russians special services less than 24 hours to figure out the entire plan and leak it to the media ( in Russian ) .
The fine details are still being ascertained , but the bottom line is this : the Ukrainians pretended to be a security firm looking for men with proven combat experience , especially those who fought in the Donbass against the Ukronazi forces .
Once recruited for some pretty typical guard duties , these men were to be flown to Minsk where they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ waiting for the next opportunity to leave Belarus .
At this point , the SBU seems to have contacted the Belarusian KGB and “ warned ” them about Russian “ mercenaries ” sent by Russia to kill Lukashenko or , at least , overthrow him .
It is also obvious now that the SBU specially wanted Russians which had combat experience in the Donbass to then ask Belarus to hand them over to Kiev .
Such a demand was made almost immediately for most of the men in this group .
So far @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but you know what I mean ) , but here is when the Belarusians and Lukashenko himself started to act really strangely .
The first logical step for the Belarusian authorities should have been Lukashenko calling Putin and asking for an explanation .
Alternatively , the head of the Belarusian KGB could have called the head of the FSB and ask him for clarifications .
But , instead of doing that , the Belarusian KGB organized this ridiculous “ seizure ” of the Russian “ mercenaries ” while the latter were asleep @ @ @ @ @ @ @ whatsoever what was going on .
Next , instead of working with the Russians , Lukashenko just gave a long interview to one of the most talented and most morally repugnant Ukie journalist , Dmitrii Gordon ( who proudly proclaims that he is an SBU agent ) .
But then it only got worse .
Lukashenko pounced on the opportunity to , yet again , engage in his typically long-winded rants against Russia .
He even went as far as to suggest that Belarus might extradite some of these Russian men to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ know , had provided a list of wanted men to the Belarusian KGB ) .
From these actions it became immediately clear to the Russians that Lukashenko was playing some kind of dirty game in the last days before the Presidential election which took place on Sunday .
So what could explain the outright bizarre behavior of the Belarusians ?
Reason one : Simply put – Lukashenko ’ s popularity is declining as fast as the disposable income of the Belarusians .
Reason two : The US is clearly engaged in major strategic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Reason three : The Belarusian state in its current condition is simply not viable and never was .
Let ’ s take these one by one .
While nobody doubts the outcome of any election in Belarus , it is also pretty uncontroversial that most Belarusians do support Lukashenko .
The point is not whether Lukashenko would win , but only by how much he would win ?
The elections yesterday yielded the lowest possible and acceptable result for Lukashenko : 80 % .
This figure is really meaningless , all it shows @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at winning elections .
This time , however , there appear to be more protests than in the past and , unlike what happened in the past , the protests are not limited to Minsk and they have now spread to other cities .
So while Lukashenko was never at risk of officially losing the election , a maidan-like protest remains a clear concern for him .
But there is much more to this story .
Following a meeting between Lukashenko and Pompeo , the US will now open a ( very big @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the West has been calling Lukashenko all sorts of names , and now it is suddenly “ all smiles ” .
Is that really a coincidence ?
I very much doubt it .
But it even gets much worse than that : the US is sending one of its most capable and dangerous officials to subvert Belarus : I am referring to Jeffrey Giauque , a State Department intelligence official with a long track of successive destabilization missions .
Listen to him introduce himself to the Belarusian people : In fact , it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ provocation with the Russian “ terrorists ” was carefully crafted and implemented by a joint US-Ukrainian effort .
Had the Ukie SBU not been so sloppy with how they organized it all ( it took the FSB less than 24 hours to get a full and accurate picture of what had happened ) this plan might have succeeded .
In fact , it still might .
But blaming it all on the US , the SBU and Lukashenko really does not tell the full story .
The truth is that Belarus is a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ even than the Ukraine , and it is a state which simply can not survive by itself .
Neither can it hope to survive forever on Russian aid .
And while looking at the roots of Ukrainian nationalism is important and interesting , such an exercise is useless in the case of Belarus since Belarusian nationalism is something truly a-historical and artificial and which really has no foundation outside western ideological dogmas .
While the Soviet Union ’ s Marxist and generally russophobic ideology regime always fostered the emergence of local nationalisms ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” ) , Belarusian nationalism was something which never got much traction , which is hardly surprising since any distinction between a Russian and a Belarusian is much smaller than the differences amongst Russians who now live in a very diverse and truly multi-ethnic society .
Still , from the point of view of the Party and their western curators , not splitting away Belarus from Russia while such countries as the Ukraine or Kazakhstan declared their independence was unthinkable , thus a kind of weird compromise was reached which was supposed to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ those of Belarus .
Some agreements were made , others were endlessly negotiated about ( especially any energy deals ! )
and what eventually resulted from this all is this weird and artificial statelet of only 10 million people .
As for its leader , he declared that Belarus will follow a “ multi-vector ” foreign policy which I would summarize as follows : pump as much money out of Russia as possible , while at the same time seeking support from the AngloZionist Empire .
There is another very worrisome development taking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Belarusian KGB was either hopelessly incompetent ( which it ain ’ t ! )
or penetrated by western agents .
I find the second explanation much more likely .
If we now assume that the Belarusian KGB has been penetrated and compromised , then this is very bad news for Lukashenko who might find himself in the same situation as , say , , who was betrayed by his own secret services ( we can also remember how many US/Israeli agents were in high position around Bashar Assad until the war in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) .
Frankly , while the CIA and the rest of them are not very good at some things , they are truly world-class masters in the art of corrupting officials and this might have already happened in Belarus .
Right now , there are riots in Minsk and in other cities and while in the capital the riot police has things mostly under control , there have already been cases of riot cops running for their lives to avoid being lynched by the mob .
As of the time of writing this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ KGB has declared that they are hunting down the worst agitators and rioters , but considering how easy it has been for the Ukrainian SBU to trick ( or , worse , infiltrate ) the Belarusian KGB , I am not feeling very reassured by this verbiage : special services are here to take care of dangerous problems , not to make big statements .
Right now , the latest we hear from the Belarusian KGB is that they prevented the assassination of the main opposition figure Svetlana Tikhanovskaya .
Heck , this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the ( clueless ) Tikhanovskaya would make a perfect “ sacrificial lamb ” ( and an terrible politician , should she ever be elected ) .
But this also looks like some interests inside the Belarusian KGB are courting Tikhanovskaya .
Both versions are equally bad , I think .
How serious is all this ?
There are already ( false ) rumors spread by Polish media about Lukashenko having fled Belarus in his aircraft .
This rumor is clearly designed to create the ( wrong ) impression that Lukashenko is the next @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of these men , Lukashenko is a much tougher man than Ianukovich ever was .
Furthermore , the kind of media-campaign waged now by the western , Polish and Ukie media is unprecedented in its magnitude and it will be very hard for the regime to regain control of the country .
As for Lukashenko , he now seems to have reversed his tune somehow : after accusing Russia of treating Belarus not as a brother , but as a partner , now he says that he spoke to Putin and got a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and now he says that Russia and Belarus will be brothers after all .
Not very convincing , to say the least .
There are already ( false ) rumors spread by Polish media about Lukashenko having fled Belarus in his aircraft .
This rumor is clearly designed to create the ( wrong ) impression that Lukashenko is the next Ianukovich : while I equally dislike both of these men , Lukashenko is a much tougher man than Ianukovich ever was .
Furthermore , the kind of media-campaign waged now by the western @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in its magnitude and it will be very hard for the regime to regain control of the country .
As for Lukashenko , he now seems to have reversed his tune somehow : after accusing Russia of treating Belarus not as a brother , but as a partner , now he says that he spoke to Putin and got a 5 page document explaining it all , and now he says that Russia and Belarus will be brothers after all .
Not very convincing , to say the least .
Quite logically , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which was never that high to begin with , is now rapidly degrading and many analysts who , in the past , praised Lukashenko for his ( supposedly ) “ firm ” policy towards the West are now openly voicing their disgust .
An increasing number of Russians are now openly wondering with this entire “ supranational union state ” concept .
As for Lukashenko ’ s much vaunted “ multi-vector policies ” they look like a banal case of trying to sit between two chairs .
It now appears pretty obvious that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Lukashenko only long enough to give a short lived and semi-credible appearance of benevolence ; now they are already talking about reintroducing sanctions on Belarus and on Lukashenko personally .
This is all extremely dangerous for Russia for the following reasons : • Lukashenko is an absolutely terrible “ our son of a bitch ” ( they always are ! )
to back and his latest antics have shown the Kremlin that Lukashenko is very much part of the problem , not of the solution .
• If Lukashenko remains in power , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( mostly very effective ) repressive apparatus which might be enough to silence the opposition , but not enough to make Lukashenko truly popular .
• Lukashenko himself is clearly both dishonest and unprincipled .
He does not care one bit about Russia ( or Belarus for that matter ) , he cares only about himself .
In other words , as long as he remains in power , Belarus will be a major concern for Russia .
• If Lukashenko is overthrown , be it by a KGB plot or a Maidan-like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ darn sure that whoever comes to power will be 1 ) vetted by the USA and 2 ) rabidly anti-Russian .
• Belarus does not have much of an economic significance for Russia , but for security and , even more so , military reasons Belarus is absolutely vital to the Russian security This last point needs to be further clarified .
Not only is Belarus located in a strategically crucial location , the Belarussian armed forces are very well trained and equipped ( no comparison to the Ukie forces ) and they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Kremlin .
There are also Russian forces deployed in Belarus .
Finally , the contacts between the Belarusian and Russian military are very friendly and very deep .
To have NATO take over Belarus would truly be a major problem for Russia ( one that she can deal with , but it would require a major re-thinking of the threat from the West ) .
So where do we go from here ?
It seems to me that if Putin does “ more of the same ” Russia risks seriously losing Belarus which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Banderastan is falling apart , would really be a crying shame .
Right now , Russia needs to contain the “ Ukrainian infection ” while , at the same time , preparing an after-Lukashenko ( before it is too late ) .
Obviously , Lukashenko will not gracefully resign , so Russia needs to find a tool in her toolkit to force him to do so .
Personally , I have always believed that fully reincorporating Belarus into Russia would not only solve the “ Belarusian problem ” but that it would also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I am confident that Russia has more than enough influence and resources in Belarus to force a change .
Yes , that would be both difficult and dangerous , but not doing so could result in a much worse outcome .
Russia needs to act .
Quickly and resolutely .

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Written by The Saker; Originally appeared at The Unz Review
Some of my longtime readers might have noticed that I rarely (if ever!) wrote about Belarus or President Lukashenko. As always with the blog, there is a reason for why I do mention something and no less a reason why I do not mention something. In the case of Belarus or Lukashenko, my reason for not writing about them was the exactly why I never wrote about the Ukraine before 2013: I was both uninspired and mostly disgusted with what I saw taking place there. And I did not feel strongly enough to write about it. That changed for the Ukraine with the Euromaidan.
Now the events in Belarus force me to address this very unpleasant topic: Belarus is facing a complex and dangerous situation which might well result in a major crisis inside Belarus and even a loss of sovereignty. But first, before we look into what just happened, let me begin with a quick “mini-primer” about Belarus. Here is what I think everybody ought to know about this country:
Belarus is a completely artificial creation, even more artificial than the Ukraine. At least in the Ukraine there were “westerners” (Galicians) who truly were not Russians at all (you can think of them as the “real Ukrainians” if you want) and whose hatred for everything Russian was every bit as rabid as the one of the Interahamwe of Rwanda. There is no meaningful equivalent to the Banderites in Belarus.
Lukashnko was no more pro-Russian than Ianukovich. This is crucial. Lukashenko was always pro-Lukashenko, not pro-Russia. Both the West and Lukashenko like to say that Belarus is the only real Russian ally. This is false. Technically, Russia and Belarus are supranational union states. However, it is true that Lukashenko tried to use the historical identity between the Russian and Belarusian people to demand that Russia help him out over and over and over again. And until recently, Russia did.
As a country, Belarus is a quasi perfect police state with an extremely competent and feared KGB (yes, in Belarus they kept the name) which controls everything and everybody. This is also crucial for reasons I will explain below.
As for the Kremlin, it always wanted to foster a reunification with Belarus but this process was never fully completed due to regular problems, and even crises, between Moscow and Minsk. Russia poured in immense sums of money to keep the Belarusian society from crashing.
Finally, Belarus is really a poor country with very limited resources. For Russia, however, Belarus is a crucial military ally, one which plays a central role in Russian defense plans. If the US and NATO were successful in taking control of the country, this will be a major strategic threat for the Russian security.
These are just a few pointers to compare and contrast Belarus with the Ukraine.
Now let me summarize what just happened.
The Belarusian authorities have declared that “hundreds” of men (supposedly Russians) have been sent to Belarus with nefarious intentions. Lukashenko has since officially confirmed that he got this info from the Ukrainian SBU. The men themselves were described as terrorists, insurgents, members of the “Wagner” PMC, subversives, etc. and their goals were described as killing Lukashenko, triggering a new “maidan” in Belarus, create chaos, etc.
Frankly, the Belarusian authorities never got their story straight and, frankly again, this really makes no difference at all. Here are two things which I consider as indisputable:
Russia would never even consider using force or illegal covert operations against Lukashenko and/or Belarus The Belarusian KGB knows everything of any importance taking place in Belarus
I would even argue that argument #2 very much supports argument #1.
Whatever may be the case, it appeared that a group of Russian security guards had been recruited by a Belarusian firm to provide security in various countries (Sudan and Venezuela is often named). They traveled to Belarus and planned to fly out of Minsk for their final destinations. They were delayed, apparently deliberately, then they missed their flight and were told to go and rest at a hotel which happened to be located not far from the residence of Lukashenko. In the middle of the night, a KGB swat team moved in with flash-bang grenades and guns drawn and brutally arrested everybody in spite of the fact that none of the sleepy Russians offered any kind of resistance. No weapons of any kind were found, no evidence of any covert plans either, but the authorities declared that since these men were not drinking or harassing waitresses and since they kept to themselves, this was a clear proof that they were on a secret mission (I am not joking!).
All of the above is absolute and utter nonsense and we should not get distracted by the minutia of this clearly fabricated pretext.
Here is what really happened.
It now appears that the Ukrainian secret service SBU (which does nothing without Uncle Sam’s approval) mounted a complex covert operation to try to get Belarus and Russia into a confrontation. The entire operation, including recruitment, purchase of airline tickets, etc was, in fact, run from the Ukraine. This was also the biggest mistake the Ukies did: they did not hide their actions well enough and it took the Russians special services less than 24 hours to figure out the entire plan and leak it to the media (in Russian). The fine details are still being ascertained, but the bottom line is this: the Ukrainians pretended to be a security firm looking for men with proven combat experience, especially those who fought in the Donbass against the Ukronazi forces. Once recruited for some pretty typical guard duties, these men were to be flown to Minsk where they would miss their plane and be left waiting for the next opportunity to leave Belarus. At this point, the SBU seems to have contacted the Belarusian KGB and “warned” them about Russian “mercenaries” sent by Russia to kill Lukashenko or, at least, overthrow him.
It is also obvious now that the SBU specially wanted Russians which had combat experience in the Donbass to then ask Belarus to hand them over to Kiev. Such a demand was made almost immediately for most of the men in this group.
So far so “good” (not really, but you know what I mean), but here is when the Belarusians and Lukashenko himself started to act really strangely.
The first logical step for the Belarusian authorities should have been Lukashenko calling Putin and asking for an explanation. Alternatively, the head of the Belarusian KGB could have called the head of the FSB and ask him for clarifications. But, instead of doing that, the Belarusian KGB organized this ridiculous “seizure” of the Russian “mercenaries” while the latter were asleep in their hotel and had no idea whatsoever what was going on.
Next, instead of working with the Russians, Lukashenko just gave a long interview to one of the most talented and most morally repugnant Ukie journalist, Dmitrii Gordon (who proudly proclaims that he is an SBU agent).
But then it only got worse.
Lukashenko pounced on the opportunity to, yet again, engage in his typically long-winded rants against Russia. He even went as far as to suggest that Belarus might extradite some of these Russian men to the Ukraine (which, as we now know, had provided a list of wanted men to the Belarusian KGB). From these actions it became immediately clear to the Russians that Lukashenko was playing some kind of dirty game in the last days before the Presidential election which took place on Sunday.
So what could explain the outright bizarre behavior of the Belarusians?
Reason one: Simply put – Lukashenko’s popularity is declining as fast as the disposable income of the Belarusians.
Reason two: The US is clearly engaged in major strategic PSYOP to seize control of Belarus.
Reason three: The Belarusian state in its current condition is simply not viable and never was.
Let’s take these one by one.
While nobody doubts the outcome of any election in Belarus, it is also pretty uncontroversial that most Belarusians do support Lukashenko. The point is not whether Lukashenko would win, but only by how much he would win? The elections yesterday yielded the lowest possible and acceptable result for Lukashenko: 80%. This figure is really meaningless, all it shows is how good the Lukashenko regime is at winning elections. This time, however, there appear to be more protests than in the past and, unlike what happened in the past, the protests are not limited to Minsk and they have now spread to other cities. So while Lukashenko was never at risk of officially losing the election, a maidan-like protest remains a clear concern for him.
But there is much more to this story.
Following a meeting between Lukashenko and Pompeo, the US will now open a (very big) embassy in Minsk. For years the West has been calling Lukashenko all sorts of names, and now it is suddenly “all smiles”.
Is that really a coincidence?
I very much doubt it.
But it even gets much worse than that: the US is sending one of its most capable and dangerous officials to subvert Belarus: I am referring to Jeffrey Giauque, a State Department intelligence official with a long track of successive destabilization missions.
Listen to him introduce himself to the Belarusian people:
In fact, it is now pretty obvious that the entire provocation with the Russian “terrorists” was carefully crafted and implemented by a joint US-Ukrainian effort. Had the Ukie SBU not been so sloppy with how they organized it all (it took the FSB less than 24 hours to get a full and accurate picture of what had happened) this plan might have succeeded. In fact, it still might.
But blaming it all on the US, the SBU and Lukashenko really does not tell the full story.
The truth is that Belarus is a completely artificial state, much more artificial even than the Ukraine, and it is a state which simply cannot survive by itself. Neither can it hope to survive forever on Russian aid. And while looking at the roots of Ukrainian nationalism is important and interesting, such an exercise is useless in the case of Belarus since Belarusian nationalism is something truly a-historical and artificial and which really has no foundation outside western ideological dogmas.
While the Soviet Union’s Marxist and generally russophobic ideology regime always fostered the emergence of local nationalisms (and even created previously non-existing “nationalities”), Belarusian nationalism was something which never got much traction, which is hardly surprising since any distinction between a Russian and a Belarusian is much smaller than the differences amongst Russians who now live in a very diverse and truly multi-ethnic society. Still, from the point of view of the Party Nomenklaturaand their western curators, not splitting away Belarus from Russia while such countries as the Ukraine or Kazakhstan declared their independence was unthinkable, thus a kind of weird compromise was reached which was supposed to reassure both the people of Russia and those of Belarus. Some agreements were made, others were endlessly negotiated about (especially any energy deals!) and what eventually resulted from this all is this weird and artificial statelet of only 10 million people. As for its leader, he declared that Belarus will follow a “multi-vector” foreign policy which I would summarize as follows: pump as much money out of Russia as possible, while at the same time seeking support from the AngloZionist Empire.
SIDEBAR: Yes, I know, Lukashenko is called the “last dictator of Europe” and he is not popular in the West. My point is that his lack of popularity is to be credited to the West, and not to him. Over and over again, Lukashenko tried to get support (meaning “money”) from the West and now Pompeo & Co. have apparently decided to make “their” son of a bitch “our” son of a bitch. What I mean by that Lukashenko was the textbook case of the “our son of a bitch” phenomenon, but not for the West – for Russia. I furthermore believe that like all “sons of bitches” (including “theirs” and “ours”) – Lukashenko has now turned into a liability for Russia.
There is another very worrisome development taking place now: in this entire business the Belarusian KGB was either hopelessly incompetent (which it ain’t!) or penetrated by western agents. I find the second explanation much more likely.
If we now assume that the Belarusian KGB has been penetrated and compromised, then this is very bad news for Lukashenko who might find himself in the same situation as, say, Nicolae Ceaușescu, who was betrayed by his own secret services (we can also remember how many US/Israeli agents were in high position around Bashar Assad until the war in Syria forced them to pick a side).
Frankly, while the CIA and the rest of them are not very good at some things, they are truly world-class masters in the art of corrupting officials and this might have already happened in Belarus.
Right now, there are riots in Minsk and in other cities and while in the capital the riot police has things mostly under control, there have already been cases of riot cops running for their lives to avoid being lynched by the mob. As of the time of writing this (Monday 21:50 UTC) the Belarusian KGB has declared that they are hunting down the worst agitators and rioters, but considering how easy it has been for the Ukrainian SBU to trick (or, worse, infiltrate) the Belarusian KGB, I am not feeling very reassured by this verbiage: special services are here to take care of dangerous problems, not to make big statements.
Right now, the latest we hear from the Belarusian KGB is that they prevented the assassination of the main opposition figure Svetlana Tikhanovskaya. Heck, this might even be true, considering that the (clueless) Tikhanovskaya would make a perfect “sacrificial lamb” (and an terrible politician, should she ever be elected). But this also looks like some interests inside the Belarusian KGB are courting Tikhanovskaya. Both versions are equally bad, I think.
How serious is all this?
Very!
There are already (false) rumors spread by Polish media about Lukashenko having fled Belarus in his aircraft. This rumor is clearly designed to create the (wrong) impression that Lukashenko is the next Ianukovich: while I equally dislike both of these men, Lukashenko is a much tougher man than Ianukovich ever was.
Furthermore, the kind of media-campaign waged now by the western, Polish and Ukie media is unprecedented in its magnitude and it will be very hard for the regime to regain control of the country.
As for Lukashenko, he now seems to have reversed his tune somehow: after accusing Russia of treating Belarus not as a brother, but as a partner, now he says that he spoke to Putin and got a 5 page document explaining it all, and now he says that Russia and Belarus will be brothers after all.
Not very convincing, to say the least.
Very!
There are already (false) rumors spread by Polish media about Lukashenko having fled Belarus in his aircraft. This rumor is clearly designed to create the (wrong) impression that Lukashenko is the next Ianukovich: while I equally dislike both of these men, Lukashenko is a much tougher man than Ianukovich ever was.
Furthermore, the kind of media-campaign waged now by the western, Polish and Ukie media is unprecedented in its magnitude and it will be very hard for the regime to regain control of the country.
As for Lukashenko, he now seems to have reversed his tune somehow: after accusing Russia of treating Belarus not as a brother, but as a partner, now he says that he spoke to Putin and got a 5 page document explaining it all, and now he says that Russia and Belarus will be brothers after all.
Not very convincing, to say the least.
Quite logically, Lukashenko’s popularity in Russia, which was never that high to begin with, is now rapidly degrading and many analysts who, in the past, praised Lukashenko for his (supposedly) “firm” policy towards the West are now openly voicing their disgust. An increasing number of Russians are now openly wondering with this entire “supranational union state” concept. As for Lukashenko’s much vaunted “multi-vector policies” they look like a banal case of trying to sit between two chairs.
It now appears pretty obvious that the leaders of the Empire stopped hating Lukashenko only long enough to give a short lived and semi-credible appearance of benevolence; now they are already talking about reintroducing sanctions on Belarus and on Lukashenko personally.
This is all extremely dangerous for Russia for the following reasons:
Lukashenko is an absolutely terrible “our son of a bitch” (they always are!) to back and his latest antics have shown the Kremlin that Lukashenko is very much part of the problem, not of the solution. If Lukashenko remains in power, it will be only thanks to his (mostly very effective) repressive apparatus which might be enough to silence the opposition, but not enough to make Lukashenko truly popular. Lukashenko himself is clearly both dishonest and unprincipled. He does not care one bit about Russia (or Belarus for that matter), he cares only about himself. In other words, as long as he remains in power, Belarus will be a major concern for Russia. If Lukashenko is overthrown, be it by a KGB plot or a Maidan-like violent insurrection, we can be pretty darn sure that whoever comes to power will be 1) vetted by the USA and 2) rabidly anti-Russian. Belarus does not have much of an economic significance for Russia, but for security and, even more so, military reasons Belarus is absolutely vital to the Russian security
This last point needs to be further clarified. Not only is Belarus located in a strategically crucial location, the Belarussian armed forces are very well trained and equipped (no comparison to the Ukie forces) and they represent a major military asset for the Kremlin. There are also Russian forces deployed in Belarus. Finally, the contacts between the Belarusian and Russian military are very friendly and very deep. To have NATO take over Belarus would truly be a major problem for Russia (one that she can deal with, but it would require a major re-thinking of the threat from the West).
So where do we go from here?
It seems to me that if Putin does “more of the same” Russia risks seriously losing Belarus which, at a time when the Ukrainian Banderastan is falling apart, would really be a crying shame. Right now, Russia needs to contain the “Ukrainian infection” while, at the same time, preparing an after-Lukashenko (before it is too late). Obviously, Lukashenko will not gracefully resign, so Russia needs to find a tool in her toolkit to force him to do so.
Personally, I have always believed that fully reincorporating Belarus into Russia would not only solve the “Belarusian problem” but that it would also solve the “Lukashenko problem”. I am confident that Russia has more than enough influence and resources in Belarus to force a change. Yes, that would be both difficult and dangerous, but not doing so could result in a much worse outcome. Russia needs to act. Quickly and resolutely.
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southfront--2020-08-11--Turkey Sends Military For ‘Gunnery Drills’ Off Rhodes As Contested Gas Exploration Resumes

Greece ’ s defense ministry says it ’ s prepared to “ counter ” any Turkish military maneuvers in a worsening situation which appears ripe for conflict , also given Turkey ’ s oil and gas exploration plans have been source of intense controversy for the past year , resulting in threatened EU sanctions for violations of Greek and Cypriot waters .
This as an urgent Greek Government Council for National Security meeting is expected to kick off Monday in Athens .
“ Turkey doesn ’ t recognize Greece ’ s claim that its territorial waters start immediately south of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” Bloomberg continues .
“ The gunnery exercises that will run through Tuesday , according to a Turkish navy website , are a message that Ankara won ’ t accept any agreement or move that would limit its own maritime interests in the Mediterranean.
” Though as of a week ago it appeared a cooling of tensions could be on the horizon , with Athens and Ankara said to be in negotiations , Turkey abruptly halted its diplomacy after the announcement of a Greece and Egyptian deal defining their exclusive economic zones @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Turkey denied the agreement as “ null and void ” — which means Turkey ’ s expansionist claims are being contested by pretty much every Mediterranean country , also including Israel .
The exception of course , is the Tripoli-based Libyan Government of National Accord ( GNA ) , which lately inked its own agreement with Turkey defining broad swathes of the Mediterranean as within Turkey ’ s rights .
Erdogan ’ s office has since said that the Greece-Egypt deal effectively cut Turkey out of crucial dialogue , so it is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ We were engaged in talks with Greece for the last two-and-a-half months in Berlin and had even agreed on a joint statement but Greece announced its deal with Egypt just a day before it , ” the Turkish presidency spokesman Ibrahim Kalin told CNN-Turk television on Sunday .
Turkey has sought to argue that the so-called Turkish Republic of Cyprus , which remains unrecognized internationally , gives it expansive rights encompassing the whole of Cyprus , including areas that cut into Greece ’ s waters .
The EU , with France ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has consistently sided with Greece and Turkey , condemning Turkey ’ s maritime violations of EU member states ’ Exclusive Economic Zones .

Greece’s defense ministry says it’s prepared to “counter” any Turkish military maneuvers in a worsening situation which appears ripe for conflict, also given Turkey’s oil and gas exploration plans have been source of intense controversy for the past year, resulting in threatened EU sanctions for violations of Greek and Cypriot waters. This as an urgent Greek Government Council for National Security meeting is expected to kick off Monday in Athens.
“Turkey doesn’t recognize Greece’s claim that its territorial waters start immediately south of Kastellorizo, the most distant Greek outpost,” Bloomberg continues. “The gunnery exercises that will run through Tuesday, according to a Turkish navy website, are a message that Ankara won’t accept any agreement or move that would limit its own maritime interests in the Mediterranean.”
Though as of a week ago it appeared a cooling of tensions could be on the horizon, with Athens and Ankara said to be in negotiations, Turkey abruptly halted its diplomacy after the announcement of a Greece and Egyptian deal defining their exclusive economic zones in contradiction to Ankara’s interpretation.
Turkey denied the agreement as “null and void” — which means Turkey’s expansionist claims are being contested by pretty much every Mediterranean country, also including Israel. The exception of course, is the Tripoli-based Libyan Government of National Accord (GNA), which lately inked its own agreement with Turkey defining broad swathes of the Mediterranean as within Turkey’s rights.
Erdogan’s office has since said that the Greece-Egypt deal effectively cut Turkey out of crucial dialogue, so it is forced to resume its energy exploration. “We were engaged in talks with Greece for the last two-and-a-half months in Berlin and had even agreed on a joint statement but Greece announced its deal with Egypt just a day before it,” the Turkish presidency spokesman Ibrahim Kalin told CNN-Turk television on Sunday.
Turkey has sought to argue that the so-called Turkish Republic of Cyprus, which remains unrecognized internationally, gives it expansive rights encompassing the whole of Cyprus, including areas that cut into Greece’s waters. The EU, with France’s Macron lately leading the way, has consistently sided with Greece and Turkey, condemning Turkey’s maritime violations of EU member states’ Exclusive Economic Zones.