End Of The Week Roundup

Dec 06, 2024

So much going on, it’s enough to make your head spin. In no particular order …

In addition to the Lavrov - Tucker interview, I picked up from Larry Johnson the CNN interview with Lavrov’s deputy, Sergei Ryabkov. Interestingly, the interviewer, Fred Pleitgen, is actually German and I noticed that he pronounced Russian words correctly, although his Wiki page says he majored in North American studies. However, his perspective, especially toward the end seemed very typically American. I should add that Ryabkov, while generally handling himself very well, completely flubbed the closing exchange.

Highlights, IMO. Like Lavrov—but more outspokenly, perhaps—Ryabkov maintained that the war is about Russia resisting being subjected to DC/Brussels, not really about Ukraine. He also maintained that, under Trump 1.0, US - Russia relations “went from bad to worse” and also criticized Trump’s choice of such outspokenly Russia hostile foreign policy appointees. When the subject of Kellogg as envoy for Russia - Ukraine was raised, Ryabkov laughed heartily at the mention of Kellogg. It seems clear that the Russian, understandably, strongly resent the idiotic rhetoric coming from the Trump team and that, based on Trump 1.0, do not hold out high hopes for Trump’s supposed peace blitz. Instead, Ryabkov made it extremely clear that Russia is in this war to win, and that’s exactly what they intend to do.

Watch CNN’s full interview with Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister

Following on from the Rogan - Benz interview; note that obstructing regime change has become “human rights abuse”:

Secretary Antony Blinken @SecBlinkenDec 5
I met with human rights activists to discuss Russia’s abuses in Ukraine and concerns over crackdowns on civil society and media, political prisoners, and spreading “foreign agent” laws in the OSCE region. We must stand strong against repression and defend human rights.
Glenn Diesen @Glenn_Diesen
The US has weaponised human rights:
- Human rights entail American fake "NGOs" representing (or replacing) civil society of other states
- US support for genocide is not a human rights issue

Coming soon to a country near us/you? Something about TikTok posts—how do you say Russia Hoax in Romanian?

Visegrád 24 @visegrad24
Romania has become the first country in the world to annul a presidential election result due to foreign intervention via TikTok

Kit Klarenberg @KitKlarenberg
Absolutely shocking, brazen move, executed as 'wrong' candidate was gonna win. But unsurprising. Calin Georgescu stood on explicit anti-war, anti-sanctions platform and garnered widespread support in Romania and diaspora circles. His victory simply couldn't be permitted.
10:07 AM · Dec 6, 2024
Romania very interesting case as population predominantly eastern-leaning but EU/US has invested *vast* resources in turning the country pro-West, and NATO has grand plans for missile/base expansion there. So of course any threat to those ambitions must be neutralised.
Said it before, will say again - we are living in an age of shameless tyranny. The West is no longer concerned about negative optics of draconian, undemocratic, illiberal actions like this, and don't even bother concealing them. Very, very dark time we're living in. What's next?
przidnt @przidnt1
Wasn't the "do over" election in 2004 basically the first step of Ukraine on the path of destruction it's currently on?!

I think Arnaud is being rather unfair to reddit:

Arnaud Bertrand @RnaudBertrand
Crazy... Trump nominates a guy - former senator David Perdue - who has a reddit-level understanding of [China] as his ambassador to China.
For instance he wrote this article (https://washingtonexaminer.com/magazine-features/3142400/chinas-new-war-americas-freedom-depends-on-confronting-the-threat/…) entitled "China’s new war: America’s freedom depends on confronting the threat" in which he writes, laughably, that "the CCP firmly believes its rightful destiny is to [...] convert the world to Marxism". Which is absolutely insane paranoid talk, and the very contrary of what China seeks to achieve: they don't want foreigners to influence THEM, but they couldn't care less which system other countries have... Never in its entire history has China tried to spread its beliefs in other countries - you never had Taoist missionaries roaming the world for instance - it's completely antithetical to Chinese culture.
…
Ironically he quotes Sun Tzu in his article. He and Trump probable missed his key teaching about the crucial importance of knowing your adversaries...
11:08 PM · Dec 5, 2024

Maybe this will keep the Chinese too busy to bother trying to convert us to Marxism:

Largest gold deposit in the world worth $83 billion found in China

Just a link, but an interesting discussion:

Alon Mizrahi @alon_mizrahi
The dumbest move ever: Turkey's destined-to fail Syria bet

As my wife (who’s doing so much better now) said: God must really luv Jimmy Carter to keep him alive to see this day:

Biden will leave office as the 'worst president' in modern history, according to voters in devastating poll

U.S. Has Stopped Ukrainian ATACMS Strikes On Russia

The halt came right after a phone call from Valery Gerasimov to Charlie Brown. Message sent and received?

Amos Goldberg, Professor of Genocide Studies at The Hebrew University in Jerusalem "Yes, it is genocide. It's so difficult and painful to admit it, but we can no longer avoid this conclusion. Jewish history will henceforth be stained"

How dare he?

Alex (Sasha) Krainer @NakedHedgie
Putin just crossed West's red line, insulted out cherished values!
Quote
Legitimate Targets @LegitTargets
BREAKING: Russia has BANNED the Satanic Temple.

2:09 AM · Dec 6, 2024

Big Serge has a handy primer on the “operational geography” of Syria:

Big Serge @witte_sergei
If you've been following Syria from the beginning this will be very basic, but lots of people are keying in for the first time after the rebel shock offensive on Aleppo. It's worth reviewing the basic operational geography of Syria.
The Syrian Arab Army (SAA) is staring down the barrel of a cataclysm after melting away across the northwestern front. The structural problem, as such, is that the government's twin strongholds (around the capital in Damascus and on Syria's Mediterranean coastline) can be severed from each other if Hama and Homs can be taken along the vital M5 artery (which runs north-south and connects the country's largest cities from Damascus to Aleppo).
With Hama fallen, Homs is all that remains to connect the capital with Alawite stronghold along the coastal range. The capital would also lose ground lines of communication with critical Russian bases, including the naval base at Tartus and the Khmeimim Air Base at Latakia. If the SAA loses Homs, it will the climax to a totalizing strategic disaster.