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UN General Assembly’s 72nd Session
Stephen Lendman
UNGA 72 convened on September 12. The General Debate runs from September 19 - 25, featuring addresses by top officials of memer states.
Sergey Lavrov head’s Russia’s delegation. On September 21, he’ll address the GA. He’ll meet with numerous leaders and other officials from attending countries, along with US-appointed General-Secretary Antonio Guterres.
He’ll present Russia’s anti-imperial, anti-war, multi-polarity worldview, supporting “unconditional respect for the sovereignty and the rights of nations to choose their own way,” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova explained.
He’ll call for strict “adherence to the principle of supremacy of international law and the UN Charter, as well as the Charter prerogatives of the UN Security Council, which bears primary responsibility for international peace and security,” she stressed.
Trump’s UN Reform Declaration
Stephen Lendman
Putin wasn’t invited to Trump’s UN reform meeting, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov explained, convened ahead of the General Assembly’s 72nd session, an unacceptable snub.
A handful of countries alone got to participate, ones willing to sign Trump’s 10-point plan. Upper house Federation Council Defense and Security Committee First Deputy head Franz Klintsevich called his proposal “a diktat rather than a discussion,” adding:
“I cannot really judge if UN reform is timely at the moment, and whether it may cause bigger disputes among countries. Those are, so to say, issues of a different layer, but anyway this is not the way to address them.”
His draft declaration states “(w)e support the secretary-general in making concrete changes in the United Nations system to better align its work on humanitarian response, development and sustaining peace initiatives.”
“We commit to reducing mandate duplication, redundancy and overlap, including among the main organs of the United Nations.”
He wants America’s funding commitment cut, other countries paying more. As of September 18, 128 nations signed his declaration, most pressured to go along or risk US wrath.
US Anti-BDS Legislation
Stephen Lendman
Global BDS activism is vital - the most effective initiative challenging Israeli ruthlessness, essential to preserve and support.
Congressional Israel Anti-Boycott Act legislation wants it criminalized. It aims to “amend the Export Administration Act of 1979 to include in the prohibitions on boycotts against allies of the United States boycotts fostered by international governmental organizations against Israel and to direct the Export-Import Bank of the United States to oppose boycotts against Israel, and for other purposes.”
Its key provisions include:
Congressional opposition to BDS.
Calling UNHCR criticism of Israel support for BDS, notably its March 2016 blacklist of companies operating in Occupied Palestine on stolen land.
Expanding the Export Administration Act (EAA), prohibiting involvement with any foreign government’s boycott of Israel.
Deplorable Ignorance and Indifference of Most Americans
Stephen Lendman
Americans are the most over-entertained, uninformed people on the planet - mostly know-nothings about domestic and geopolitical issues mattering most.
A new Gallup poll provides more evidence - 58% of respondents supporting war if peaceful methods with North Korea fail.
Americans are so out-of-touch with reality they have no idea that the Trump administration ruled out dialogue with Pyongyang or why.
They have no understanding of what nuclear war means, endangering the lives and welfare millions of people in North and South Korea, others potentially in Japan and cross-border in China.
They fail to grasp the possibility that war on the DPRK could invite China’s intervention to protect its security, Russia possibly getting involved for the same reason.
Internet Freedom Threatened
Stephen Lendman
Digital democracy is the last frontier of free and open expression, the only reliable independent space for real news, information and analysis - enabling anyone to freely express views on any topics.
Government censorship remains an ominous possibility. Last spring, UK Prime Minister Theresa May’s Tory Manifesto called for Britain becoming “the global leader in the regulation of the use of personal data and the Internet.”
She urged government control over what people write, post and share online, the end of UK digital democracy if enacted into law.
Britain’s Investigatory Powers Act requires Internet companies to maintain records on customers’ browsing histories, along with ministerial power to breach online privacy, including encrypted content – on the phony pretext of assuring no “safe space for terrorists to be able to communicate online.”
Her scheme isn’t about “protect(ing) the security of people and ensur(ing) the fairness of the rules by which people and businesses (must) abide.”
It’s a sinister plan to control online content, prohibiting what Tories want suppressed, government acting as gatekeeper.
Lavrov/Tillerson Meeting at UN
Stephen Lendman
Both officials had numerous conversations in person and by phone accomplishing nothing.
US relations with Russia remain irreconcilably hostile, more dismal than any time post WW II. The geopolitical aims of both countries are polar opposite.
Russia pursues world peace, stability, multi-world polarity and mutual cooperation among all nations. Washington seeks unchallenged global dominance - aggressive wars and color revolutions its favored strategies. Possible confrontation between these powers is ominously real by accident or US design. The threat of nuclear war between them should terrify everyone.
Monday Trump/Netanyahu Meeting
Stephen Lendman
They’ll meet on the sidelines of the UN’s 72nd session in New York.
According to Israel’s Channel 2, he’ll propose America either renege on the Iran nuclear deal or revise it to serve Israeli interests, rendering worthless.
Either way, US noncompliance with its terms could sabotage it altogether, depending on how other P5+1 countries act.
In New York where he’ll address the UN General Assembly, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani blasted the notion of Washington reneging on its international responsibility, saying it would “mean trampling on a clear political obligation that a government has. This is nothing to be proud of,” adding:
“We will never initiate a violation of the international agreement, but if the other side wishes to assault the rights of the Iranian people, Iran will certainly give the due response.”
Whether Washington fulfills its obligation or not, the nuclear deal remains an important international dialogue triumph, he stressed.
Shinzo Abe: Japan’s US Controlled Puppet Prime Minister
Stephen Lendman
Japan remains occupied US territory 72 years after WW II ended.
Around 50,000 US forces operate on dozens of military bases, about half on Okinawa, the country’s Puerto Rico, its poorest prefecture, dominated by America’s presence under conditions no responsible government would tolerate.
A US-Japan Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) stipulates terms under which American forces remain and operate.
The late Chalmers Johnson called SOFAs a modern-day version of 19th century China’s “extraterritoriality,” denying host countries jurisdiction over US military and civilian personnel.
America’s military presence usurps, distorts and subverts local authority, preventing host countries from enforcing their laws against crimes committed by US personnel, unacceptable noise, pollution, environmental contamination, and use of valued public land.
Japan is a US vassal state. Nonexistent North Korean and Chinese threats are used as pretexts for permitting America’s disruptive military presence.
Is it really true that America’s richest 1% are ‘overwhelmingly Jewish’?
Eric Zuesse
On September 8th, an article I wrote for Strategic Culture Foundation, “What America’s Aristocracy Want,” was republished at the Donbass (far-eastern formerly Ukrainian) website, “South Front”. The article blamed a lot on America’s billionaires and centi-millionaires, “the American aristocracy” (as I referred to it), who own controlling blocs of stock in America’s largest corporations, and whose political donations control the U.S. federal Government. It defined the powerful Americans whose agenda is harmful for the world, as consisting of the very few richest Americans (and their agents who run their international corporations, ‘nonprofits’, ‘news’media, and lobbying). But the most-heavily up-voted reader-comments there, were from people who clearly received a very different message from that article. They blamed ‘Jews’ — and all of them (not merely the super-rich ones). America’s billionaires who aren’t ‘Jews’ were set aside from blame, in their comments. The first (the most popular) reader-comment was “No, the reason they think they're superior isn't being Aryan (quite the opposite) or especially cunning or whatever. They think so because it's their religion – [the richest] american ‘1%' is overwhelmingly jewish.” The second-most-favored comment was “America is NOT ruled by an aristocracy. It is ruled by a plutocracy. To be more precise it is ruled by a Judeo-pluto-kleptocracy.” The third-most-favored comment was “A better title would be 'What America's Jews Want'.”
Hostile US Actions Against RT and Sputnik News
Stephen Lendman
The latest US hostile action against Russia requires a company providing services for RT America to register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), along with an FBI probe of Sputnik News to check for FARA violations.
Enacted in 1938 one year before WW II began, it requires agents representing foreign powers politically or quasi-politically to disclose their relationship with other governments, along with information about their activities and finances. Originally administered by the State Department, FARA later came under Justice Department jurisdiction.
From 1938 until amended in 1966, enforcement focused on foreign propagandists, during WW II used in 23 criminal cases, the last time America had an enemy, none since then except invented ones to justify unjustifiable imperial wars.
Since 1966, FARA focused on foreign lobbying instead of propaganda. From then to now, no one was convicted of violating the law.
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