by Stephen Lendman

Irresponsible Russia bashing can’t hide what’s increasingly clear. Putin is on the right side of history, polar opposite Obama’s imperial agenda.

America wages endless wars of aggression, masquerading as humanitarian intervention and democracy building, notions neocons infesting Washington abhor.

Might makes right dominates their thinking. Humanity destroying global war looms more possible than any previous time in history.

Russia is the world champion supporter of peace and stability, mutual cooperation among all countries, multi-world polarity, inviolability of fundamental international laws, and respect for universal sovereign independence.

In contrast, US hubris and arrogance threaten humanity’s survival. Putin’s intervention in Syria was the right initiative at the right time. Sooner would have been better.

The die was cast against the right enemy - the scourge of terrorism, ISIS its leading exponent, America its principal backer. A good v. pure evil struggle remains ongoing.

Russia’s main concern is a greater homeland terrorist threat than already. Better to fight it abroad than at home, at the same time helping Syrian forces regain the offensive, recapture lost territory, and preserve its sovereignty.

Washington can’t do a thing to challenge his righteous mission, other than wage ineffective propaganda war, maintain sanctions accomplishing nothing, along with politicizing international sports - trying to bar Russian athletes from Olympiad and other major competitions by lodging unsubstantiated doping charges.

US-led Russia bashing doesn’t diminish Putin’s overwhelming domestic popularity - around 89%, an astonishing public endorsement, maintained month after month, helping affirm his status as the preeminent world leader, making Obama look pathetic by comparison, a lame duck, finishing out his remaining time in office, before earning millions from lucrative book deals and speaking tours, the usual post-US presidency preoccupation, cashing in for serving monied interests, Jimmy Carter the exception.

At the same time, neocons in Washington could escalate current wars and/or instigate new ones. An eventual US-Russian confrontation looms large, especially if Clinton or a Republican neocon succeeds Obama.

The year 2017 could be a watershed one for the worst. Possible global war with weapons of mass destruction should scare everyone.

Russia is dedicating much effort and expense to homeland defense, developing and deploying formidable weapons able to match the Pentagon’s best, putting nothing past Washington, a partner in name only, a clear adversarial threat.

Putin is a model geopolitical leader, outwitting Obama time and again, without bravado and propaganda. Straightforwardness is his most refreshing characteristic - plain talk, saying what he means and meaning what he says, polar opposite Obama’s duplicitous demagoguery.

Putin is a geopolitical truth-teller, Obama a serial liar, a moral coward, a war criminal, disgracing the office he holds.

Commenting on Russia’s military development, Putin said Washington aims to “neutralize Russia’s nuclear potential. References to Iran and North Korea nuclear threats are just a cover for the true purpose (of US-led NATO’s missile defense for offense).”

“That is to neutralize the potential of other nuclear states…primarily Russia.” America wants unchallenged “strategic military superiority, with all the consequences that entails.”

The nonexistent Iranian threat was always the justification for so-called missile defense. “Now the Iranian problem is off the table,” said Putin. “Treaties have been signed and ratified.”

“Yet, the work on missile defense continues as before,” targeting Russia like always, Iran a duplicitous smokes screen. Moscow is responding accordingly, Putin explained - taking “necessary measures…by strengthening its own missile defense.”

Much more as well - “develop(ing) weapons (able to) penetrate any missile defense shield. Weapons were developed and successfully tested, able to penetrate multilayer missile defense systems.”

Dozens of upgraded, new-generation ICBMs are being added to Russia’s already formidable nuclear arsenal this year. Washington “ignore(s)” Russia’s justifiable concerns about its hostile missile defense plans, Putin stressed.

“We have pointed out that these actions are an attempt to undermine the nuclear parity principle, and to destabilize the existing world and regional order, he explained.

Russia united with China formidably challenge America’s hegemonic agenda, the best chance to prevent the scourge of another global war, one able to end life on earth if launched.

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Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.

His new book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks World War III".

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.

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