by Thorsten J. Pattberg for the Saker blog
Thousands of China collaborators are under surveillance. Some are on the brink of ruin, others don’t even know what’s in store for them
The Coming Purge of the China-Hands
Tag: Diplomacy
NATO Chief Voices Fear Of War With Russia While US Greenlights Drone Strikes On Russian Territory
In what Antiwar’s Dave DeCamp describes as “a rare acknowledgment of the dangers of backing Ukraine,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg acknowledged a fear of something going “horribly wrong” and leading to a hot war between the nuclear-armed alliance and Russia.
NATO Chief Voices Fear Of War With Russia While US Greenlights Drone Strikes On Russian Territory
Related:
You (and Almost Everyone You Know) Owe Your Life to This Man.
Xi Jinping’s grand welcome in Saudi Arabia compared to Joe Biden’s ‘cold fist bump’
Xi Jinping’s grand entry into Saudi Arabia that saw his Air China Boeing 747 flanked by jets of green and white smoke to represent the Gulf country’s flag has been contrasted with the lukewarm welcome received by Joe Biden during his visit to the country a few months earlier.
Xi Jinping’s grand welcome in Saudi Arabia compared to Joe Biden’s ‘cold fist bump’
Video via The National News
The Perpetually Irrational Ukraine Debate
Because war is uncertain and reliable information is sparse, no one knows how the war in Ukraine will play out. Nor can any of us be completely certain what the optimal course of action is. We all have our own theories, hunches, beliefs, and hopes, but nobody’s crystal ball is 100 percent reliable in the middle of a war.
The Perpetually Irrational Ukraine Debate
NYT, WSJ Look to Hawks for Ukraine Expertise
A crucial function of a free press is to present perspectives that critically examine government actions. In major articles from the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal discussing the escalation of the war in Ukraine, however, such perspectives have been hard to come by—even as the stakes have reached as high as nuclear war.
NYT, WSJ Look to Hawks for Ukraine Expertise
War Industry Looking Forward to “Multiyear Authority” in Ukraine
Gen. Mark Milley, chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, recently offered some matter-of-fact observations about the immense human suffering and death caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and placed the responsibility for ending the war squarely on Moscow’s shoulders. “There’s one guy that can stop it — and his name is Vladimir Putin,” Milley said. “He needs to stop it.”
But then Milley crossed what he most certainly never imagined to be a tripwire when he said, “And they need to get to the negotiating table.”
War Industry Looking Forward to “Multiyear Authority” in Ukraine
French ambassador: US ‘rules-based order’ means Western domination, violating international law
France’s ex US Ambassador Gérard Araud criticised Washington for frequently violating international law and said its so-called “rules-based order” is an unfair “Western order” based on “hegemony.” He condemned the new cold war on China, instead calling for mutual compromises.
French ambassador: US ‘rules-based order’ means Western domination, violating international law
Inside the Trilateral Commission: Power elites grapple with China’s rise
Inside the Trilateral Commission: Power elites grapple with China’s rise (original)
Each new candidate for Commission membership is carefully scrutinized before being allowed entry. As a rule, members who take up positions in their national governments — which is uncannily common — give up their Trilateral Commission membership while in public service. Those include U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Jake Sullivan, the U.S. national security adviser, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.
This revolving door between the commission and senior government ranks has always been fodder for conspiracy theorists. Its first director in 1973, Zbigniew Brzezinski, later became U.S. President Jimmy Carter’s national security adviser. The very existence of the commission, meanwhile, seems predicated on the question of whether governing should be left to the people. It is a question the commission itself has tackled head-on since 1975: Is democracy functioning? Or does someone need to guide it?
That year, three scholars — Michel Crozier, Samuel Huntington and Joji Watanuki — wrote a report for The Trilateral Commission titled “The Crisis of Democracy.” In it, Huntington wrote that some of the problems of governance in the U.S. stem from an “excess of democracy.”
Related:
The Biden Zelensky Relationship: Who to Trust?
The Biden Zelensky Relationship: Who to Trust?
Is it destructive enough to shake Washington’s trust in Zelensky? Five days after the missile strike, former Australian ambassador to Poland and Cambodia Tony Kevin claimed that “There were unmistakeable signs this week of growing Western war-weariness and irritation with Zelensky’s endless demands for more weapons and money.” Then, echoing and amplifying Thomas Friedman’s report that “privately, U.S. officials are a lot more concerned about Ukraine’s leadership than they are letting on,” Kevin added that “There is growing speculation that Zelensky’s position as leader may be weakening. Washington may be considering replacing him, but it remains very unclear how and to what end.”
Lloyd Austin Holds In-Person Talks With Chinese Counterpart
A Pentagon official said after the talks that ‘competition remains the defining feature’ of the US-China relationship
Lloyd Austin Holds In-Person Talks With Chinese Counterpart
Ms. Cat’s Chronicles 
You must be logged in to post a comment.