Author: Steven Sahiounie

By Manlio Dinucci “NATO has ended up in the attic,” wrote the political commentators of several newspapers a month ago, after France had withdrawn its ambassador from Washington on September 16. It was Paris’ protest at being excluded from the strategic-military partnership between the United States, Great Britain and Australia, announced the day before, and at losing a lucrative contract for the sale of submarines to Australia, which will be replaced by nuclear submarines supplied by the U.S. and Great Britain. A week after the resounding diplomatic break, however, the French general Lavigne was put in charge of the Allied Transformation…

By Pepe Escobar The plenary session is the traditional highlight of the annual, must-follow Valdai Club discussions – one of Eurasia’s premier intellectual gatherings. Vladimir Putin is a frequent keynote speaker. In Sochi this year, as I related in a previous column, the overarching theme was “global shake-up in the 21st century: the individual, values and the state.” Putin addressed it head on, in what can already be considered one of the most important geopolitical speeches in recent memory (a so-far incomplete transcript can be found here) – certainly his strongest moment in the limelight. That was followed by a comprehensive Q&A session (starting at 4:39:00). Predictably, assorted Atlanticists, neocons and…

Iran’s President Ebrahim Raeisi has expressed grief over the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, saying the United States is certainly involved in the ongoing insecurity in the war-torn country. Raeisi made the remarks during separate meetings with the visiting foreign ministers of Pakistan and Tajikistan in Tehran on Tuesday, as high-ranking officials from Afghanistan’s six neighboring states plus Russia are set to meet in the Iranian capital on Wednesday. “There must be an inclusive government in Afghanistan that can ensure the country’s security and end war, bloodshed and fratricide,” Raeisi said. The Iranian president expressed concern over the current situation in…

More than 80 percent of Iran’s gas stations has returned to service, a spokesperson for the National Iranian Oil Products Distribution Company says, following a massive cyberattack which disrupted the sale of subsidized gasoline in Iran. “The number of stations connected to the smart fueling system has been increasing … and we hope the system will be fully operational by the end of today,” Fatemeh Kahi said. The attack on Tuesday disrupted the sale of heavily subsidized gasoline in Iran, causing long queues at gas stations across the country. Secretary of Iran’s Supreme Council of Cyberspace said the massive cyberattack…

Over 2.9 mln people have contracted the coronavirus infection worldwide over the past week, more than 49,000 died. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the number of new infections has increased by 4% over seven days, while the number of fatalities has gone up by 5%. “During the week of 18 to 24 October 2021, the global number of new cases increased slightly (4%) compared to that of the previous week, with just over 2.9 million new cases,” the WHO’s COVID-19 Weekly Epidemiological Update said. The European region accounted for more than half of new weekly cases. Over one…

The Taiwan Strait won’t become a significant obstacle for the armed forces of mainland China should an armed conflict between Beijing and Taipei break out, and US support won’t help Taiwan either, Beijing’s The Global Times newspaper wrote on Wednesday, reflecting the opinion of China’s military and political circles. “Today, the military capability comparison between the Chinese mainland and the island of Taiwan is completely different from that of 18 years ago,” the newspaper’s editorial said. The article emphasizes that “the mainland doesn’t want to fight a war. It has the will to safeguard peace and take war as the last resort.”…

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier presented Chancellor Angela Merkel and members of her cabinet with official resignation papers; the outgoing Chancellor and her cabinet will continue to act as interim government until the new cabinet is established. The presentation ceremony was aired by NTV. “A lot happened during the last four years. To say that the previous legislative period was difficult, considering the tasks that had to be solved, does not nearly reflect the real state of affairs,” the German President noted. According to Steinmeier, “the pandemic turned the world upside down.” “It took huge efforts from you, from the entire…

At least 11 people were martyred late Tuesday in an ISIS attack on a village in eastern Iraq. The attack on Al-Rashad in Diyala province left “11 martyred and 13 wounded, including women and children “, according to a local security source. The area has been sealed off and reinforcements were deployed to hunt the ISIS members.On his account, Iraqi President Barham Salih strongly denounced the attack, describing it as a “cowardly act” aimed at destabilizing the country.  “The cowardly terrorist attack against our people in Diyala is an appalling attempt to destabilize the country. It is a reminder of…

The occupation’s al-Quds municipality resumed on Tuesday digging operations in the al-Yusufiya cemetery in occupied Jerusalem, in order to open a public park. Occupation vehicles surrounded the land it intends to turn into a park as part of its “Torah Gardens” project. “Israel’s” unethical demolition of the graves is based on claims that the area “belonged to Jews” in old times. Israeli occupation forces assaulted residents opposing the demolition of the Islamic cemetery, and the defacing of the graves and headstones of their children. In a related context, settlers stormed the al-Aqsa Mosque under the protection of Israeli occupation police.source :…

Democratic Party leader Talal Arslan, in an exclusive interview with Al Mayadeen, stressed that “It is not permissible to link the investigation of the August 4’s Beirut Port explosion to the Tayouneh ambush in the capital, Beirut, which occurred on October 14.” Arslan added, in the Tuesday interview, that “What happened in Tayouneh is not an individual incident, but rather an incident that threatens civil peace and coexistence.” He considered that “If we do not deal with what happened in a radical way, we might see other similar events to the Tayouneh ambush.” Arslan expressed his support for the Secretary-General of…