Since the end of October this year, the situation in Myanmar (thirty years earlier called Burma) has again been the subject of increased attention from world news agencies. Although not as close, of course, as in the cases of armed conflicts in Ukraine, and now in the Middle East.
The Brotherhood Alliance seized over 30 military outposts in two days of fighting since it launched “Operation 1027” in northern Shan State on Oct. 27. The National Unity Government (NUG)* is cooperating with the Brotherhood Alliance and is preparing the People’s Defense Forces (PDF) in other regions and states to coordinate attacks against the military. Read the latest here.
The point of the attack: It is a route along the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor. and is the main route for transporting goods traded by China and Myanmar through the Muze and Qingshuihe border checkpoints. With an annual trading value of morethan 5 billion US dollars, 8 days ago these routes were paralyzed. No one dared to travel through. especially cargo trucks Due to the fact that during normal times there must be transport of goods in and out. Thousands of vehicles follow these routes each day.
Despite his frequent votes against defense bills, Senator Bernie Sanders has collected more presidential campaign contributions from defense industry sources than any other candidate, including Donald Trump. That’s according to data on 2020 funding at the OpenSecrets.org website, which is sponsored by the Center for Responsive Politics.
Links to “Amy Klobuchar”, not “Bernie Sanders”?! According to OpenSecrets, Joe Biden received the most from the MIC. Donald Trump came in second, with Bernie Sanders in third place. OpenSecrets doesn’t distinguish between employers and employees!?*
Wealthy donors have long funded think tanks with official-sounding names that produce research that reflects the interests of those funders (Extra!, 7/13). The weapons industry is a major contributor to these idea factories; a recent report from the Quincy Institute (6/1/23) demonstrates just how much influence war profiteers have on the national discourse.
The Biden administration encourages private sector deals for several reasons. It saves the Pentagon from further depleting its own armory after months of sending arms to Ukraine. And private sellers can provide weapons that the government cannot — like the Soviet-style weapons* already used by Ukrainian soldiers.
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Whether the deal goes forward or not, the BMI documents show that the Ukraine war presents an opportunity to charge big prices. The bullets that Mr. Zlatev planned to sell were 50 percent more expensive than those publicly listed by other vendors. His grenade launchers were selling for more than twice what is listed on a price list for United Nations peacekeeping forces. Experts say these increases typically help pay the middlemen — at the expense of a nation in the middle of a war.
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