Friday, July 13, 2018

Rumors of War - King of the North

South Korea scrambles fighter jets after Russian bombers trespass zone - UPI.com
UPI reports: "Two Russian military aircraft entered South Korea's Air Defense Identification Zone multiple times on Friday afternoon, according to Seoul's joint chiefs of staff. [...] A South Korean official told Segye Ilbo the intrusion marks the first time Russian military planes entered the KADIZ four times in one day. South Korea's military broadcasted warnings in addition to scrambling fighter jets, according to reports. The Russian strategic bombers that entered South Korean airspace were identified as the Tupolev TU-95."

12 Russians accused of hacking Democrats in 2016 US election - AP
The AP reports: "Twelve Russian military intelligence officers hacked into the Clinton presidential campaign and Democratic Party, releasing tens of thousands of stolen communications, in a sweeping effort by a foreign government to meddle in the 2016 U.S. election, according to a grand jury indictment announced days before President Donald Trump’s summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin. [...] U.S. intelligence agencies have said the meddling was aimed at helping the Trump campaign and harming the election bid of his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton. The effort also included bogus Facebook ads and social media postings that prosecutors say were aimed at influencing public opinion and sowing discord on hot-button social issues."

Comment: When Trump looks at Russia he sees friendly oligarchs that he has done business with. When the rest of the Western establishment looks at Russia they see a former Cold War rival lead by a man who was raised in the Cold War and who has a sizable chip on his should about his country having lost that struggle and wants more than anything to revive the old empire. Russia is not a business competitor, they are a strategic rival and leader of nations opposed to U.S. global hegemony. That is simply a fact. Trump ignores it to our peril. 

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