G6, G7, or G8? The Post War British Imperial World is Fast Disintegrating

Harley Schlanger

roguemoney.net

The British Empire's 20th Century world — often mislabeled the "American Century" — is crumbling so rapidly that even the BBC headlined its coverage today: "Has Trump Broken the Special Relationship?" The President held an impromptu press conference on the White House lawn this morning before leaving for the G7 meeting in Quebec, where he told the press that "Russia should be in the meeting...it may not be politically correct, but we have a world to run." The newly elected Prime Minister of Italy Guiseppe Conte immediately tweeted: "I agree with President Trump. Russia should be re-admitted to the G8."

French President Macron had yesterday essentially ruled the U.S. out of the G7, even before Trump's "sacrilegious" invitation to Russia. Macron said we can just get along as a G6, without the US, while German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said that the discord between Europe and the U.S. can no longer be swept under the rug, and Europe will have to seek new alliances. With whom, one must ask? 

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From Syria to Ukraine: the UN Security Council is useless

The Week 

It's prevented WW3 - so far - but without reform it can't do much else, says Mohammad Amir Anwar.

THE CRISIS in Ukraine, as Russian troops apparently occupy Crimea and threaten its borders with the rest of the country, has sent strong tremors through the international diplomatic community. Both Barack Obama and Angela Merkel have made lengthy phone calls to Vladimir Putin to urge restraint, and to make him aware of “consequences” if Ukraine’s sovereignty isn’t respected.

As to what consequences Russia’s military incursion into Crimea may have, we cannot yet be sure. There is talk of boycotting the G8 meeting in Sochi later this year; there is also talk of expelling Russia from the G8 altogether in favour of a G7. Meanwhile, the EU’s high representative for foreign affairs, Catherine Ashton, is heading to Ukraine this week. EU sanctions are being discussed, and the IMF will visit Kiev to discuss a financial aid package to the interim government.

But what of the United Nations? What action can the UN take to help defuse the situation? To get a sense of whether or not the UN can achieve anything, we only have to look to Syria – where, after three years, a nightmarish conflict still rages at a cost of more than 140,000 people killed, millions exiled, and millions more internally displaced.

There are numerous other examples of conflicts shaped by the military interventions of the US or Russia: Iraq, Afghanistan, Nicaragua, Chile, Iran, Vietnam and Kosovo, to name a few. The UN has been spectacularly unable to deal with those as well. At the heart of its failing are the organisation’s power structure, and the problem of enforcing member states' accountability to international law – and the institutional failings of the UN Security Council (UNSC).

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Directing Libyan Air Strikes 'Like Playing a Computer Game'

Sydney Morning Herald

Destruction in Misrata. When asked what his work entailed, Flight Sergeant Thornton said: '"It is like playing a computer game. You can't just view it as a flat screen. ...Our job is to speed up the kill chain. " 

TEN thousand metres above Libya, the war against Muammar Gaddafi is being directed over the roar of aircraft noise by men hunched over banks of computer screens.

This is Magic 52, one of three Royal Air Force E-3D spy planes in charge of the operational effort to enforce United Nations Security Council resolution 1973.

From the airborne command, control and communication centre, specialists direct every part of the bombing campaign.

In the course of a nine-hour sortie, they can direct 100 aircraft to carry out strike after strike. With access to Britain's most sensitive military secrets, they co-ordinate reconnaissance, refuelling, and missions to track and attack Colonel Gaddafi's military.

At the weekend there were further strikes by the RAF on the dictator's compound in Tripoli.

The military pressure on the regime is about to be dramatically escalated with the arrival of British and French attack helicopters, which will step up attacks on forces on the ground.

South Africa's President, Jacob Zuma, will visit Tripoli this week on behalf of the African Union in a last-ditch attempt to broker an exit plan for Colonel Gaddafi, though signs are he is digging in against threats from the G8. ...

As world burns, G8 leaders fiddle ... with the Internet. Seriously?

Christian Science Monitor

Sarkozy, Obama, and the other leaders at the G8 should be evaluating the policies that have brought them to the brink of financial ruin. Unfortunately, their attention will be elsewhere: on Internet regulation, for one thing.

President Obama will join other G8 leaders today at the posh, French seaside resort of Deauville. On the agenda: proposed global regulations for the Internet, post-tsunami Japan, and military escapades in North Africa. Bizarrely absent from the top priorities listed by hosting head of state Nicolas Sarkozy is the most urgent issue of all: the need to rein in massive government over-spending and debt.

One needn't travel to France to get a clear view of this problem. Here in the US, for example, federal revenues will top $2 trillion this year, but federal spending will approach double that amount. Such reckless spending has set the stage for a battle royal between Democrats and Republicans over raising the national-debt ceiling.

House Speaker John Boehner (R) of Ohio has correctly warned that increasing the debt ceiling without a firm commitment to slash spending would signal to investors that America still is not serious about kicking its spending addiction. ....

 

Obama, financial war and the elimination of DSK

voltairenet.org/ 

It is impossible to understand the downfall of Dominique Strauss-Khan without linking it to his project for the creation of a new international reserve currency, which was to be launched on 26 May 2011 at the Deauville G-8 summit. The project was paradoxically anticipated as much by the Emerging States as by stateless capital, but rejected by the U.S.-Israeli military-industrial complex. Thierry Meyssan exposes the chicanery of the Obama administration to dodge its commitments.

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