Politics
Friday 2 February 2018
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“We expect a great atmosphere in Russia… a smooth operation and everything is done for the fans.”
Since Russia was chosen to host the 2018 World Cup, it has been the subject of a massive anti-doping investigation, banned from participation in the Olympics, and accused of worker exploitation and the mass killing of stray animals as part of the preparations for the world soccer tournament. The U.S. Justice Department investigates a firm, that helped Russia to win the 2018 World Cup bid. In addition, Russian soccer hooligans have been banned from the European Union for violence. -
"A(n) Su-27 fighter jet from air defense alert force was used to intercept the target. The Su-27 approached the aircraft to a safe distance and identified it as a US ЕР-3Е Aries II electronic warfare and reconnaissance aircraft. The Su-27 flight was performed in strict compliance with international rule[s] of airspace use, no incidents were reported.”
Russian fighter jet behaved aggressively and provocatively, violating safety protocols and a number of international and bilateral agreements. -
“Behind every member of the list stand ordinary citizens of our country. As a matter of fact, all of us, all 146 million, have been put on some kind of list. I don’t understand the point of this, but it is undoubtedly an unfriendly act, which is harmful to the development of our relationship as a whole.”
Putin’s statement is out of touch with reality but in line with a Soviet slogan from 1953: “The people and the Party are united” -
“The fur coat is Russian; I bought it at the Ladya (National Crafts) Exhibition at the World Trade Center (Moscow) this year. The shoes are by the firm Vitacci -- a Russian company of Russian-Italian manufacturing. I wear OURS – either what was made completely in Russia or by the order of a Russian company.”
Maria Zakharova's leopard-pattern fur coat is stylistically not traditionally Russian, and Vitacci does not sell her shoes. -
"We waited for more than 70 years for the rehabilitation of the Crimean Tatar people, which they saw come true thanks to our president (in spring 2015, the Russian president signed a decree on measures to rehabilitate the Armenian, Bulgarian, Greek, Crimean-Tatar and German peoples-TASS). For more than 20 years (when Crimea was part of Ukraine-TASS) we asked that the Crimean Tatar language be a state language in Crimea, and only saw this come true after the reunification of the peninsula with Russia."
A "Crimean Tatar" leader says his people support Vladimir Putin in his bid for reelection in March. But does he really speak for the Crimean Tatar people? -
“The American anti-missile defense system base in Romania is threatened by a flock of sheep.”
Sheep on a farm located just 10 meters from a U.S. anti-missile defense base in Romania have repeatedly triggered the base's security alarm. This, according to the U.S. Command, "undermines the minimum security requirements and is incompatible" with running the base. -
“There is a new social network being tested in Chechnya @ Mylistory, which is as good as the foreign ones”
Although designed as a clone of Instagram, Mylistory, unlike the original app, is controlled by the Chechen government and used as a propaganda tool -- and, possibly, a surveillance tool. -
"All of this [provisions of the new U.S. Nuclear Posture Review ] is attributed to some imaginary plans of Russia that Pentagon strategists talk about – that we plan to use tactical nuclear weapons or, using conventional forces, invade somewhere in the Baltic countries or Poland. In retaliation, the Americans intend to attack us with strategic nuclear weapons. It is sheer lunacy!”
While the conclusions of the new U.S. Nuclear Posture Review (NPR), are debatable, the doctrine considers all scenarios, including Russia using tactical nuclear weapons in eastern Europe. -
[This is] A dull student report about how we assaulted democracy in all countries at once. Boring, my friends. Wake me up in five years when they find nothing and reluctantly acknowledge that there was no Russian interference.
Evidence of Russian interference in the affairs of European countries through a variety of means has been well documented. -
“The fact that the U.S. State Department is advising its citizens against travel to Russia is quite logical: if U.S. citizens go to Russia en masse, they will be able to see with their own eyes that there is not a trace of what U.S. officials routinely frighten them with.”
Russian government media have been promoting anti-American sentiments for years, U.S. diplomats have been harassed and intimidated in the Russian media and by Russian law enforcement, and U.S. organizations have been expelled and churches labeled as “extremist.” In addition, a Public Opinion Survey released on January 10 found that majority of Russians see the U.S. as Russia’s “enemy #1” -
“There is a new social network being tested in Chechnya @ Mylistory, which is as good as the foreign ones”
IT experts say the application is in “no way superior” to the original Instagram, users go further reviewing it as “wretched copy” of Instagram. -
The recent decision by the Japanese government to deploy the U.S. Aegis Ashore ABM [missile defense systems] on its territory causes a deep regret and a grave concern. Whichever arguments and motivations it invokes, … the deployment … represents yet another step in the creation of a full-fledged Asia-Pacific component of the U.S. global ABM [system] … the mentioned systems are equipped with versatile missile launchers also capable of using offensive equipment [missiles]. In practice, this will represent yet another violation of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty by the Americans with Japan’s practical assistance.
The missile defense system does not violate U.S. treaty obligations or undermine Russia’s nuclear deterrent. In fact, it is a meant to bolster regional security in response to the North Korean nuclear and missile threat. Japan is also not a party to the treaty and thus cannot violate it.