EDITORIAL
Nothing Can Succeed without the Discovery of the Principle of the Back Side of the Moon
March 3 (EIRNS)—What are nations? Why do they exist? What are they for? In reality, their purpose is nothing other than to better the condition of humanity, as John F. Kennedy said when he announced the mission to send a man to the Moon, and return him safely to Earth, by the end of the long-ago 1960s. The means for that advancement of the human condition—it is both the end and the means at once—is through genuine discovery or noēsis. What is true for a nation, is even truer for an alliance of nations like the BRICS, the Eurasian Economic Union, or the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. Even if they are still new and fragile, these linkups of Eurasian nations already point to the future of humanity.
Only in this condition of creativity is man truly happy; only in this condition is he genuinely himself. Yet this condition is virtually outlawed in the United States of today and recent times, as in Europe, and in Central and South America. Peer-group pressure and all the traditions of education insist on mere repetition of the approved formulas; on mere deduction rather than noēsis. Under this regimen, man can never know the future.
Just now, at this moment, the remarkable and unexpected success of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s intervention into Barack Obama’s and Hillary Clinton’s murderous stew in Syria, has forced to the surface the realization that trans-Atlantic society has been a failure—a historic failure. We must look to Eurasia, and the United States must henceforth have a Pacific, rather than an Atlantic orientation.
Obama shows forth clearly as a British agent, and nothing but a British agent, who has killed a great many people. And Hillary Clinton is in the same mold.
The trans-Atlantic community is a lost cause right now; it can’t and won’t come back in this form. If it is to come back, it will first have to be born anew. The remains of the trans-Atlantic community, in this form, are gone. A new form of society must be created, as has been done in the past, by Charlemagne, for example. That’s what has to be fought for—a future which will be a true future.
This is the meaning of LaRouche PAC Policy Committee member Kesha Rogers’ highly intellectual and highly inspirational campaign to return to our future in the exploration and conquest of Solar and Galactic space. Key individuals are already being drawn towards Rogers from around the country and the world.
What this means is what Lyndon LaRouche said in a discussion with associates on March 1. “We’ve got to say one thing. One thing: nothing will be successful unless the nations recognize the discovery of the principle of the back side of the Moon. In other words, you can’t say you can take what’s going on right now, and interpret that into a good effect. You’ve got to cancel that, and say, ‘Well, the problem is we have not yet understood what lies behind the Moon.’ And when we find out what is behind the Moon, which is being worked on by the Chinese and other persons, and going back to the ABCs of the original space program, without going back to these things which Obama cut down—Obama struck those programs down, and therefore he should be punished seriously for his crimes on that account. Instead of trying to interpret something and put a different, better spin on it—that doesn’t work. Because without the space program, which means the back side of the Moon in particular, without that approach, you don’t get anything, you don’t get anywhere. You’ve got to do that! It’s not an option that you might choose or not choose. You can’t deny it: You have to recognize that that’s what you have to do.”
STRATEGIC WAR DANGER
Foreign Minister Lavrov: ‘Not a Single European Issue Can Be Resolved without Russia’s Opinion’
March 3 (EIRNS)—In an article published in Russia in Global Affairsmagazine and posted in English to the Foreign Ministry website, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov writes that “during at least the past two centuries, any attempts to unite Europe without Russia and against it have inevitably led to grim tragedies, the consequences of which were always overcome with the decisive participation of our country.”
Outlining the history of almost 1,000 years, Lavrov pointed to Russia’s role in stabilizing Europe, citing “researcher of Russian history Hélène Carrère d’Encausse … that history has imbued Russia with the mission of being a link between the East and the West,” he continues, “As the successor to the Byzantine Empire that ceased to exist in 1453, Russia began a natural expansion towards the Urals and Siberia, absorbing their huge territories. Already then it was a powerful balancing factor in European political combinations, including the well-known Thirty Years’ War that gave birth to the Westphalian system of international relations, whose principles, primarily respect for state sovereignty, are of importance even today.” But, Europe was apprehensive of Russia’s rise. At the beginning of the 18th century, Peter the Great managed to put Russia into the category of Europe’s leading countries in a little over two decades of his reign. “Since that time, Russia’s position could no longer be ignored. Not a single European issue can be resolved without Russia’s opinion,” Lavrov wrote.
Later, Lavrov said, in the post-World War II period, “we had a practical chance to mend Europe’s divide and implement the dream of a common European home, which many European thinkers and politicians, including President Charles de Gaulle of France, wholeheartedly embraced. Russia was fully open to this option and advanced many proposals and initiatives in this connection. Unfortunately, our Western partners chose differently. They opted to expand NATO eastward and to advance the geopolitical space they controlled closer to the Russian border. This is the essence of the systemic problems that have soured Russia’s relations with the United States and the European Union. It is notable that George Kennan, the architect of the U.S. policy of containment of the Soviet Union, said in his winter years that the ratification of NATO expansion was a ‘tragic mistake.’ ”
Pointing out that a reliable solution to the problems of the modern world can only be achieved through serious and honest cooperation between the leading states and their associations in order to address common challenges in the current context, Lavrov wrote: “Our approaches are shared by most countries of the world, including our Chinese partners, other BRICS and SCO nations, and our friends in the EAEU, the CSTO, and the CIS. In other words, we can say that Russia is fighting not against someone, but for the resolution of all the issues on an equal and mutually respectful basis, which alone can serve as a reliable foundation for a long-term improvement of international relations.”
The U.S. Regime Change Adventure Is Finished, Thanks to Russia
March 3 (EIRNS)—Patrick L. Smith, the foreign affairs writer for Salon news website, finds that those who are trying to paint the Syria truce as a failure are guilty of shallow thinking. His more important conclusion, in a column posted on March 1, however, is that the Russians have successfully ended the U.S. reign of terror over the world known as regime change. “Taking Ukraine and Syria together—and there are plenty of reasons to do so—they define an historical moment. We watch as American power and prerogative are turned decisively back,” he writes. “In the most specific terms, it looks as if we witness the passing of the ‘regime change’ phenomenon. At the very least, Moscow has put Washington on notice that there will be no more of it without serious, open-ended resistance. Ukraine and Syria, after all, are two very sizable failures in this line.”
Smith goes into a great amount of detail as to why this is the case, but what his column really reflects, though he may not recognize it, is the end of the trans-Atlantic financial system and its geopolitical reign of terror over the world. Russia, under the leadership of Vladimir Putin, has played a crucial role in bringing that condition about by drawing a line against Western-instigated chaos, after the U.S.-NATO disaster imposed on Libya in 2011, and has thus changed the direction of history in favor of the new system of relations among nations that the BRICS, and China’s Silk Road polices are now indicating.
Russian Defense Ministry Responds to General Breedlove’s Charge of Indiscriminate Bombing In Syria
March 3 (EIRNS)—Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov responded to NATO Commander Gen. Philip Breedlove’s charge that the Russians are guilty of indiscriminate bombing of Syria because they have been largely using unguided munitions, as visible in photographs and videos released by the Russian Defense Ministry itself. Konashenkov, in remarks made yesterday, reminded Breedlove that the precision of airstrikes depends not only on smart weapons, but also on proper intelligence, the pilot’s skills, and the aiming systems of the aircraft. “Sole reliance on ‘supersmart’ or ‘superprecision’ weapons leads American hawks to tragic mistakes with fatal consequences, as it was repeatedly observed in Afghanistan, Iraq, and recently in Syria,” Konashenkov said.
General Konashenkov was referring to numerous incidents, since the U.S. intervention began in Afghanistan in October 2001, in which the U.S. bombed wedding parties and other gatherings of civilians and, most recently, a hospital, due to lack of accurate intelligence or mistakes made by those calling in the strikes or for other reasons. What the Russians have really done in Syria, is put on the table the bankruptcy of the trans-Atlantic system. The intention of that system is to wage perpetual war around the globe. The Russian intention is to bring an end to this regime, and thus their military operations, such as in Syria, are competently run to aid in bringing that about.
Rason Project Not Banned under UN Sanctions on North Korea
March 3 (EIRNS)—Although Russia voted for the new UN sanctions on North Korea on Wednesday, it did demand several concessions from the U.S. to protect important economic relations, including the crucial Rason development project in northeast North Korea, where Russian coal is transshipped to both China and South Korea.
Russia Direct reports today that, on Russia’s insistence, the UN Security Council resolution has provisions that allow aviation fuel for civilian aircraft of international carriers that fly to North Korea, although it bans aviation fuel imports otherwise. Most important, the resolution “allows North Korea to export coal and minerals for livelihood revenues.”
Vitaly Churkin, Russia’s Ambassador to the UN, told TASS that Moscow has managed to protect its economic interests while agreeing to the sanctions. “I am referring to a rather serious project of our Russian Railways Co. (RZD), namely the construction of a railroad to North Korea that will be used to deliver Russian coal to some of China’s southern regions and to South Korea.”
The project includes a consortium between Russia, North Korea, and three South Korean companies—Hyundai Marine (shipping), Korail (rail), and Posco (steel)—a combination which poses the necessary cooperative development which is the only basis for peace on the peninsula.
However, the Park Geun-hye government in Seoul is considering banning the project, by imposing its own sanctions forbidding any ships coming from the North to dock in the South. They will make that decision in the next weeks. President Park has capitulated to pressure from Barack Obama on several issues since the recent bomb test in the North. To cancel the Rason process would be suicidal and a slap at Russia and China.
Libya: Another British Mess in the Making?
March 3 (EIRNS)—Is the British Empire preparing another mess in Libya? Although France, Britain and Italy officially support UN Special Envoy Martin Kobler’s plan for a national unity government as a precondition for military intervention, British, French and Italian intelligence and special forces are already competing on the ground in Libya. The latest update, according to Italian media, is that the Rome government has secretly sent 50 intelligence personnel and will send another 50.
Today, a warning was issued by the Foreign Minister of the Libyan Dawn coalition, the so-called Tripoli government, which opposes the Kobler deal. In an interview with Italian Daily Corriere della Seratoday, Ali Ramadan Abuzaakouk delivered this message: If you want to intervene you need our permission.
Ali Ramadan Abuzaakouk is a member of the Muslim Brotherhood who claims that they want to fight ISIS. However, they reject the Kobler deal and accuse him of continuing the pro-Egypt, pro-United Arab Emirates agenda. “We agree that Italy takes the leadership of an international intervention in the war against emerging ISIS forces in Libya. But beware: Any military action in the country must be agreed upon in detail with our government in Tripoli and our military forces on the ground. If this is not the case, any kind of operation would go from being a legitimate fight against terrorism into a clear violation of our national sovereignty.”
Behind all this, is the report that Britain, France and Italy have a plan to partition Libya. The British would get Cyrenaica, the French Fezzan, and the Italians Tripolitania. As the interview with Ali Ramadan Abuzaakouk indicates, this would be the equivalent of a ticking time bomb.
NEW WORLD ECONOMIC ORDER
India Hosts Inaugural Conference of the Raisina Dialogue, Helga Zepp-LaRouche a Key Participant
March 3 (EIRNS)—The Indian Ministry of External Affairs, together with the Observer Research Foundation (ORF), hosted the Raisina Dialogue in New Delhi from March 1-3, in the first of what will be annual sessions. The conference, with over 600 guests from over 100 nations, focused on Asia’s physical, economic, human and digital connectivity, as well as the needed international partnerships to effectively address the challenges of this century.
The speakers included policy- and decision-makers, including cabinet ministers from various governments, high-level government officials and policy makers, leading personalities from business and industry, and members of the strategic community, media and academia. Among the inaugural speakers were the Ministers of Foreign Affairs from Bangladesh and India, Abdul Hassan Mahmood Ali and Sushma Swaraj; and several former Presidents: Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan, Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga of Sri Lanka, and Sir James Mancham, Founding President of the Seychelles. The conference was also addressed by Indian Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar, several other Indian ministers, as well as former Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing. They included Ding Guorong, Senior Vice President of the Silk Road Fund, as well as many other incumbent and former political officeholders, and last but not least the founder and Chairwoman of the Schiller Institute, Helga Zepp-LaRouche.
The panels discussed a variety of topics.
Under the title of “Whither the European Union,” the panelists, among them two Members of the European Parliament, dealt with the challenges the Eurozone faces with the refugee crisis and terrorism. Most of them blamed the lack of solidarity among the member states as the primary reason for the crisis. In the Q&A session, Helga Zepp-LaRouche intervened by pointing out that the only way to solve the refugee crisis is with a Marshall Plan to rebuild the whole region which has been destroyed by never-ending wars. Even though the panelists did not respond directly to her remarks, they had a huge impact. Another speaker referenced them later in the afternoon, and they were also brought up in private discussions.
In her speech during the panel “Connecting a Continent: An Asian Union,” Helga Zepp-LaRouche elaborated on this theme in the much broader context of the New Silk Road process as the only means to avoid thermonuclear war. In the Q&A session, she expanded on her remarks and brought a real strategic focus to the discussion. Throughout the proceedings, Mrs. Zepp-LaRouche was approached by many grateful and concerned people who wished to have further discussion on the issues she had raised, especially on the war danger and the New Silk Road initiative.
Other panels included such topics as “Asia’s Strategic Order,” which addressed the role of nuclear weapons vis-à-vis stability in the region, and “Waters of Asia,” which dealt with transnational development of river basins, and implications of energy corridors and international waterways.
Russia To Help Modi’s ‘Make in India’ Program a Success
March 3 (EIRNS)—Russia’s heavy equipment manufacturer Uralmash is set to enter India’s steel and mining sector. It has decided to form a joint venture with the Uttar Pradesh-based SRB International, in what is poised to be the first Indo-Russian venture in manufacturing heavy equipment. “We are looking at a joint venture company with SRB which will be formalized in the next two to three months. The equity shareholding between the two partners is being discussed but it could be a 50:50 partnership,” Vladimir Pugach head of the export division of the Uralmash Machine-building Corporation of Yekaterinburg, theEconomic Times reported.
Uralmash’s entry into India to set up manufacturing is part of the Putin-Modi agreement to help Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Make in India” program that envisages making India a manufacturing hub in the future. During the Indian Prime Minister’s December 2015 visit to Moscow, the Russian and Indian leaders said they would place the “Make in India” program at the center of their strategic relationship. Building nuclear reactor components and military helicopters in India would also be part of the relationship, the Indian Express reported at the time.
Observing the planned growth of the steel and mining sectors in India, Uralmash plans to invest up to $6 million annually in the new joint venture. The decision to form a manufacturing venture with SRB International took place during Indian side talks with the Russian delegation led by Vladimir Pugach, Russia & India Report wrote today. Uralmash and SRB have had a decade-long alliance for supply and servicing equipment for clients like Coal India, SAIL, NMDC, JSPL etc. in India.
South Korea Joins in Egyptian Development Explosion
March 3 (EIRNS)—Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi is completing his three-country tour in South Korea beginning March 2, after highly productive visits to Kazakhstan and Japan, as previous issues of the EIR Daily Alert have reported. After his meeting with President Park Geun-hye, today the two leaders signed nine Memoranda of Understanding regarding South Korean participation in building canals and subways in Egypt, among other matters. They said they would make an effort to increase the trade volume between the two countries which reached $2.4 billion last year, according to Yonhap. President el-Sisi will be in South Korea for one more day on March 4.
U.S. POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC
Housing Bubble Back: Home ‘Flipping’ at Ten-Year High
March 3 (EIRNS)—The number of active U.S. home-flips last year was the highest in nearly a decade, and growing, reports CNBC today. Flips, which are speculative purchases, often of homes that have gone into foreclosure and placed for immediate sale by banks, made up 5.5% of all sales last year. Nearly 180,000 family homes and condos were flipped in 2015, according to RealtyTrac.
RealtyTrac also reports that the total number of investors who completed at least one flip in 2015 was at the highest level since 2007. Homes flipped in 2015 yielded an average gross profit of $55,000 nationwide, the highest for flips nationally since 2005, according to RealtyTrac. The return on investment was close to 46%, up from 44% in 2014 and up from 35% in 2005. Flipping was rampant in 2005, thanks to easy credit. Back then, over 8% of all sales were flips.
Add that to the fracking bubble, financial derivatives at an all-time high, and it’s not hard to see what’s coming.
SCIENCE & INFRASTRUCTURE
International Astronauts Forum in Costa Rica Will Bring Space Exploration to Central America
March 3 (EIRNS)—From March 7-11, two hundred space professionals, astronauts, and space technology experts will gather in San Jose, Costa Rica, where the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs will be hosting a workshop on human space technology. That meeting will be closed, but as part of the workshop, there will be an “International Astronauts Forum” that will be open to the public. The workshop and forum are being organized by Costa Rican-based Central American Aeronautics and Space Administration (ACAE), which is the brainchild of former Costa Rican-born NASA astronaut Franklin Chang-Diaz, and by Chang-Diaz’s AdAstra Rocket Co., and a local NGO.
The International Astronauts Forum will be free, but “limited” to 8,000 people, taking place in the National Stadium in San Jose. Astronauts will be participating in the Forum from the NASA in the U.S., Canada, the European Space Agency, Marcos Pontes from Brazil, and Japan. They will take questions from the audience, and present videos prepared for the event, (probably of their missions). They also plan to view greetings sent by NASA astronauts aboard the International Space Station, projected on giant screens.
Prior to the workshop, members of the NASA Space Shuttle crew, which launched on Jan. 12, 1986 (the last mission before the Challenger accident, and the first Chang-Diaz’s seven Shuttle flights) will celebrate that mission’s 30th anniversary. “Space exploration has to be democratized,” Chang-Diaz said, involving more than “the powerful and rich countries.” He has led the effort, for decades, to form a Latin American Space Agency, similar to the European organization.
China Targets Building 30 Nuclear Plants Along One Belt, One Road Route
March 3 (EIRNS)—China has set a target of building about 30 nuclear power units in countries along the One Belt, One Road initiative routes by 2030, according to Sun Qin, president of China National Nuclear Corp. (CNNC), reported China Daily today.
Sun said 70 countries in total are already planning or developing their own nuclear power projects, and it is estimated 130 more nuclear power units will have been built by 2020. “But we also face very strong competition in the international nuclear market,” he said. “Countries like Russia, South Korea, Japan and the United States are all exploring the global nuclear market aggressively.”
CNNC is one of China’s three nuclear giants. It hopes to leverage its domestic experience to boost its nuclear technology exports, saidChina Daily. It already has bilateral agreements on nuclear energy cooperation with countries including Argentina, Brazil, Egypt, Britain, France and Jordan, Sun said.
CNNC has already exported six nuclear reactors—five miniature neutron source reactors, two nuclear research facilities and one experimental reactor.
