EDITORIAL
Helga Zepp-LaRouche Exhorts the West To Join in ‘Making the Cake Bigger’ for Everyone
July 26 (EIRNS)—What is the global significance of the BRICS conference in South Africa which most of the leadership of the Western world is ignoring?
It is nothing less than building a new world economic order, in which Chinese-African relations are of the highest strategic importance, Schiller Institute President Helga Zepp-LaRouche asserted today, in her weekly Schiller Institute webcast. “I know that many people tend to dismiss Africa, especially in the United States, but what is happening is very extraordinary…. China has recognized that Africa has the potential to become the ‘new China with African characteristics.’ And many African leaders are extremely happy to be inspired by the support China is giving.”
With India and Japan joining China in offering to make major investments in African infrastructure and development, and each discussing jointly investing with China there, “you can actually see that there is a potential for a completely new alignment. This is the New Paradigm coming into being.”
The New Silk Road Spirit expressed in President Xi Jinping’s speech to the BRICS Business Conference (see EIR Daily Alert July 26), with its emphasis on the special role of science as an “inexhaustible power” for development, is “a kind of thinking which is completely unheard of by any Western leaders,” yet that is the thinking that is reshaping the world. Zepp-LaRouche is urging everyone to read the entirety of Xi’s speech for themselves. [http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2018-07/26/c_129920686.htm]
“You can really see that the world is changing in that sense to a much better place than people have any inkling of. And you can divide the world between those people who recognize that a new strategic model is being developed, and very quickly being joined by many countries in the world … and those who are absolutely indifferent, or ignorant or just don’t get it, that the old paradigm does not function any more, and that most of the countries of the world—the developing countries together with China and India—represent 80% of the world population, and they represent also an increasing part of the world economy. The BRICS for the first time has bypassed the G7 in terms of GDP.”
The Schiller Institute is intent on “get[ting] the nations of the West to understand and recognize the incredible potential which lies in this new formation and not oppose it,” she stressed.
Zepp-LaRouche insists that confrontation, including in trade war, is “lose-lose,” where no one wins. The opposite choice is win-win; “you just make the cake larger, and then everybody can have a larger piece of the cake.”
Churchill was absolutely wrong that there can never be real friendships between nations, only interests! The BRICS typifies the friendships now developing across the planet among different cultures. Herein lies the future of civilization, in Zepp-LaRouche’s view, a future in which people “relate to each other like Einstein and Planck, or like Wilhelm von Humboldt and Schiller, or other such great thinkers who treated each other because of the creative potential of the other genius.”
But to accomplish this requires action, she warned, pointing to the enormous battle which President Donald Trump faces to carry through on the success of the Helsinki summit, shown in the announcement by National Security Advisor John Bolton on Wednesday that “The President believes that the next bilateral meeting with President Putin should take place after the Russia witch hunt is over, so we’ve agreed that it will be after the first of the year.”
Zepp-LaRouche concluded her webcast with a call for people to “use the potential which is in the fact that Trump is trying to get a better relationship with Russia and that he should go back to his initial positive relationship with China, his friendship with Xi Jinping; and that all the people who were involved in Russiagate, Muellergate, that they should basically face their appropriate punishment because they committed the collusion with foreign governments, and not Trump.”
THE NEW GLOBAL ECONOMIC ORDER
Putin BRICS Remarks Imply Need for New Monetary System
July 26 (EIRNS)—Very brief remarks delivered by Russia’s President Vladimir Putin at the Johannesburg BRICS Summit today, after a restricted meeting of the five leaders’ in the BRICS Council, implicitly point to the need for a new monetary system, and the basis which has been created for such a system in the cooperative banks, funds and institutions created by the BRICS, the Belt and Road and China, and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. A good part of Putin’s statement, posted to the Facebook page of the Russian Embassy to the United States, dealt with this. He said:
“We view positively the activities of the [BRICS Business] Council to implement joint multilateral projects. It is necessary to conduct these activities in close cooperation with the [BRICS] New Development Bank. It is important that the business community should help enhance the Bank’s loan portfolio.
“The New Development Bank has considerably expanded its operations as of late. Members of the Board of Directors have approved 21 projects worth over $1 billion, including five that will be implemented in Russia.
“We support the idea of opening regional offices of the Bank. Talks are underway with Brazil on this issue. Hopefully, the possibility of opening the Russian office will be discussed after the talks.
“The establishment of the BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement [to support countries under balance-of-payments pressure] deserves praise, and this has become an important mechanism for the prompt financing of our countries’ banking sector….
“In 2017, we met in Xiamen [China] and decided to establish the BRICS Local Currency Bond Fund. This is very important for the development of the financial systems of our states. Therefore, the Fund’s timely initial operations, due to commence in 2019, serve the interests of BRICS.”
Why India Is Keen To Invest in Africa with China: An Overview
July 26 (EIRNS)—Ahead of the 10th BRICS Summit, China’s President Xi Jinping and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi had embarked on tours through some African countries. Xi, arriving in South Africa on a state visit on July 24, pledged $14.7 billion of investment in the country. During a short visit to Uganda on July 24, Modi pledged $205 million to that country. The sum is intended to help the East African country to develop its dominant agricultural sector and electricity distribution infrastructure. Both Xi and Modi were in Rwanda earlier this week, where a total of over $300 million was announced in loans. The money will develop the tiny, landlocked East African nation’s agriculture, roads and special economic zones, CNBC reported.
In recent years, both China and India, which the West has widely labeled as rivals, have brought to African nations their focus on all-round development, investing to improve African infrastructure, agriculture, education, and technological skills, among other areas.
The reasons why they chose to cooperate and collaborate in Africa’s development are many. For instance, the African nations are most receptive to all actual developmental efforts, large or small. Because of the needs of the African nations, which had all along been looked at only as sources for natural resources consumed by developed nations, every bit of investment made in these nations has a positive effect and is welcomed. Both China and India consider that providing Africa the ability to develop will bring about a sea-change in the direction and magnitude of global trade.
India is keen to expand its economic relations mostly with Southeast Asia and Africa. For China and India, Africa does not pose any geopolitical threat. Moreover, the better understanding developed between Xi and Modi since their April 27-28 Wuhan meeting enables both of them to work in tandem to improve the living conditions in Africa.
China and Russia Think Tanks Increase Collaboration for Coordinating Policy
July 24 (EIRNS)—The July 15-16 China-Russia Economy Dialogue at Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies in Beijing, attended by Russian economist Sergei Glazyev (see EIR Daily Alert July 25), is part of a collaborative effort over the last few years between Russian and Chinese think tanks to coordinate policy between the two countries at the highest levels. Most recently the joint group issued a report focusing on the bottlenecks in the economic relationship between the two countries.
Addressing the conference, Glazyev underlined this collaboration, calling for greater efforts in increasing integration between the countries’ small and medium-sized industries, facilitating greater exchanges of business entrepreneurs, and continually optimizing the business environment in both countries. He said with the promotion of joint cooperation between the Silk Road Economic Belt and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), the two countries have made breakthroughs in the areas of the economy, society and the humanities, and thereby improved their relations.
Regarding multilateral and major international issues, Glazyev said that China and Russia take a similar stance on opposing hegemonism and actively safeguarding the stability of the international community. He also emphasized the importance of the joint think tanks in working out a program of coordinating and integrating their system of investment and banking in order to promote the two countries’ mutual support and, in that way, mitigate any interference from, or sanctions imposed by, third parties.
Glazyev also stressed increasing their cooperation in science and technology, in education, and in the collaboration between the Russian and Chinese think tanks. He suggested that China and Russia should deepen people-to-people exchanges and run a series of exchange activities, such as a “China Year,” “Year of Russia,” “Year of Tourism,” “Year of Language,” “Youth Friendly Exchange Year,” and so on, in order to enhance mutual trust between the two peoples.
COLLAPSING WESTERN SYSTEM
Blairites Escalate ‘Anti-Semitism’ Campaign Against Labour Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn
July 26 (EIRNS)—The campaign alleging anti-Semitism against British Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, reported in EIR Daily Alert on July 20, has escalated. All three leading Jewish newspapers ran banner headlines yesterday, reading “United We Stand,” and charging that the Labour Party under Corbyn’s leadership is an “existential threat” to Britain’s Jewish community. The publications are the Jewish Chronicle, Jewish News and Jewish Telegraph.
The papers stated: “With the government in Brexit disarray, there is a clear and present danger that a man with a default blindness to the Jewish community’s fears, a man who has a problem seeing that hateful rhetoric aimed at Israel can easily step into anti-Semitism, could be our next prime minister.”
The person leading the hate campaign is MP Dame Margaret Hodge, who is one of the creators of New Labour and Tony Blair. She started the campaign by screaming into Corbyn’s face during a session of Parliament that he was a “fucking anti-Semite,” which prompted the Labour Party’s national executive committee to take disciplinary action against her.
Corbyn is being attacked ostensibly because the Labour Party’s executive (NEC), while it fully supports the working definition of anti-Semitism produced by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, it does not support all 11 of the examples IHRA gives as anti-Semitism—of course, half of these examples involve assertions about Israel. According to the Guardian, Labour’s NEC objects to the IHRA definition that “claiming that the existence of a state of Israel is a racist endeavor” is anti-Semitism. The party said it was concerned about creating a code that could be “used to deny Palestinians, including Palestinian citizens of Israel and their supporters, their rights and freedoms to describe the discrimination and injustices they face in the language they deem appropriate.”
The charge that Corbyn is “anti-Semitic and racist” is absurd. Hodges’ assertion was termed “deeply offensive and likely libellous” in a comment posted in the Guardian website by Prof. Jacqueline Rose, Prof. Donald Sassoon, Dr. Anthony Isaacs, and Dr. Vivienne Jackson of the Independent Jewish Voices steering committee. They state: “Contrary to much reporting, the Labour Party is engaging carefully and sensitively with the issue of anti-Semitism, on which it has accepted the core IHRA definition.” They warned that this “inflammatory rhetoric, seemingly supported by many leading Anglo-Jewish institutions and voices, risks bringing our community into disrepute, and consequently fuelling anti-Semitism. We strongly urge all Jews in Britain, whatever their political allegiances and views, to join us in repudiating the misuse of this very serious allegation.”
STRATEGIC WAR DANGER
Russia Hails Israel’s Strike against Islamic State Terrorists in Syria
July 26 (EIRNS)—The Russian Ministry of Defense praised Israel for its attack on July 25 that hit missile systems of the Islamic State on Syrian territory. The ministry’s statement said the ISIS terrorists were “seeking to provoke Israel’s strike on positions of the Syrian government army” by firing missiles at Israeli territory from the Syrian settlements of Hafa and al-Shajara in the al-Quneitra governorate.
“All Islamic State terrorists and missile systems were destroyed by a pinpoint retaliation strike of the Israel Defense Forces warplanes and artillery,” the Russian Defense Ministry said. The statement continued that the command of Russia’s task force in Syria thanked the Israeli military for preventing a big provocation by terrorists and for exterminating the militants. The IDF press service confirmed its strike against the ISIS missile launchers.
On July 23, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chief of General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov were in Israel meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman, and IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot to discuss the tasks of completing the anti-terrorist operation in Syria’s south, as well as Israel’s concerns regarding the presence of Iran.
The shooting down of a Syrian Sukhoi warplane by an Israeli Patriot anti-aircraft missile on July 24 highlights a potential flashpoint for conflicts until the Syria government is able to establish full control over the country and agreements are reached between Israel and Syria. The aircraft was involved in attacking terrorists on the Syrian side of the Golan Heights in southern Syria, which borders Israel. Israel claims the aircraft penetrated 1.8 km into the airspace over the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, and was shot down according to longstanding Israeli policy; the Syrians deny the aircraft penetrated into the Israeli zone.
According Israeli commentator Ron Ben-Yishai, Israel is demanding written agreements concerning Syria retaking control of the Syrian Golan Heights and enforcement of the 1974 Separation of Forces Agreement, part of the armistice that ended the October 1973 war. This includes the reestablishment of the United Nations detachment that was withdrawn from Syria when the terrorist war started. Prior to the terrorist war against Damascus there were virtually no incidents along the ceasefire line; in fact there was a border crossing that allowed Syrians living in the Israeli-occupied zone to cross in and out of Syria. Israel has been giving covert support to at least one of the terrorist groups in the area since the terrorist war against Syria began.
As for Iran, the Israelis demand that the Iranians withdraw completely from all Syrian territory. The Russians proposed to keep Iranians 100 km from the Israeli border. While Israeli media claim that Israel rejected this, the Russian Embassy posted a response on its Facebook page stating: “The [media] reports are not rooted in reality. The talks held between Israeli and Russian representatives in Jerusalem were productive and we were complimented on our efforts to stabilize the situation in Syria,” concluded the official statement.
The Russian-Israeli talks follow statements by Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump during their July 16 summit where they both supported the need to recognize the 1974 Separation of Forces Agreement.
Lavrov, Gerasimov Discuss Syria and Ukraine with French President Macron
July 25 (EIRNS)—Following their visit to Israel, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chief of Russia’s General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov had discussions in Paris on July 24 with French President Emmanuel Macron on the Syrian and Ukrainian conflicts. “During the talks, the sides discussed in detail the situation in Syria, the acceleration of the political settlement in the country, as well as issues related to the post-conflict reconstruction of the country. They emphasized the importance of the quickest return of refugees and temporarily displaced people to their homes,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Regarding Ukraine: “The sides also discussed the implementation of the Minsk agreements, reached on Feb. 12, 2015, confirming their intention to continue contacts in the Normandy Four format.” The Normandy Four are France, Germany, Ukraine and Russia.
Netanyahu Turns Down Russian Offer To Meet Palestine President Abbas for Now
July 26 (EIRNS)—Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected a Russian offer to hold a summit meeting with Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas, Israel’s Channel 10 said today, the Jerusalem Post reports. Netanyahu reportedly explained to the Russians that he is not interested in such a meeting until the Trump Administration reveals its peace plan. In the past, U.S. President Donald Trump has referred to the still-unpublished plan as “the deal of the century,” the Jerusalem Post wrote.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chief of Russian General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov met Netanyahu on July 23 in Israel for talks on southern Syria. Channel 10 news reported today that they also discussed the Israel-Palestine conflict.
U.S. POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC
Trump Replies to López Obrador Letter, Urges NAFTA Agreement and Migration Cooperation
July 26 (EIRNS)—On July 24, Mexico’s President-elect Andrés Manuel López Obrador, often called AMLO, and his Foreign Minister-designate Marcelo Ebrard, made known the text of a July 20 letter addressed to AMLO from U.S. President Donald Trump. The one-page letter was in reply to the July 13letter that AMLO had sent to Trump, following the President-elect’s meeting with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (see EIR Daily Alert July 23).
In his reply, President Trump again congratulated AMLO on his electoral victory, stating that “we both achieved electoral success by providing a clear vision for making our countries stronger and better,” and saying he looked forward to working closely with López Obrador “to build a great relationship between our countries.”
Trump emphasized that he agreed with the four priorities AMLO had identified—trade, migration, development and security—and said he’s directed his team to work closely with AMLO’s transition team. He also emphasized the importance of quickly renegotiating a new North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). He asserted that the U.S. economy “has never been stronger,” from which both nations can benefit. “But we can do even better. I believe a successful renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement will lead to even more jobs and higher wages for hard-working American and Mexican workers—but only if it can go quickly, because otherwise I must go a much different route. It would not be my preference, but would be far more profitable for the United States and its taxpayers.”
Another round of trilateral NAFTA negotiations was taking place in Washington today.
On the crucial issue of immigration, President Trump stated that “I believe the challenge of immigration involves more than just strong border security. We are prepared to further address the economic development and security issues that drive migrants from Central America, but we must also increase cooperation to protect the rule of law and the sovereignty of both our countries, as well as vulnerable migrants who are victimized by violent criminal organizations.”
Trump also welcomed AMLO’s focus on fighting corruption, as well as upcoming meetings between representative of AMLO’s team and U.S. administration officials, stating they will help “establish mutual understanding on many critical issues. A strong relationship will lead to a much stronger and more prosperous Mexico, which frankly would make me very happy!”
SCIENCE AND INFRASTRUCTURE
Discovery of Water on Mars Is a Joint Italian-American Enterprise
July 26 (EIRNS)—The Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionosphere Sounding (MARSIS), the radar that has detected a saltwater lake under the polar surface of Mars, was conceived and built by the Italian Space Agency (ASI) in collaboration with three Italian universities and installed on the European Space Agency Mars Express mission.
The low-frequency radar was conceived by the late Prof. Giovanni Picardi of the University of Rome and built by Thales Alenia Space Italy under ASI supervision. NASA, through the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the University of Iowa, supplied part of the electronics and the special antenna which is visible in all images of the Mars Express satellite. ASI delivered MARSIS to ESA, which installed it on the satellite launched on June 3, 2003.
The ASI team has collected data for three years and analyzed them for four years, in order to determine that the absolute permittivity would allow the team to identify the nature of the medium with certainty. The results have been peer-reviewed and were published by Science today.
It was determined that the water in lake is saltwater, because fresh water would freeze at such low temperatures. It is located on the South Pole of the planet, in a region called Planum Australe. “It is the first evidence that there is liquid water on Mars, in a sub-glacial lake,” said Enrico Flamini, ASI chief scientist for the MARSIS operation, at a press conference yesterday in Rome. “We had waited 30 to 40 years for this event.” Water and protection from ionized radiation offer good conditions for life, and there could be other lakes such as this one.
Flamini was asked whether the radar could detect the presence of life in the lake. “Given the very similar absolute permittivity of animal bodies and water, if there were a whale in the lake we would not be able to see it,” he smiled.
OTHER
Pakistan Has a New Prime Minister
July 26 (EIRNS)—Although less than 85% of the ballots cast in the July 25 National Assembly and Provincial Assembly elections have been counted as of this writing, it is evident that the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaaf (PTI) will be able to form the new government in Pakistan, and its leader, Imran Khan, the former star cricket player, will be the next Prime Minister.
Out of 272 elected National Assembly seats, about 260 so far have projected winners. PTI is hovering around winning 120 seats—about 15-17 seats short of an absolute majority. The ruling PML(N), whose leader Mian Nawaz Sharif is now in jail on charges of corruption, and the PPP, led by Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, the son of the late Benazir Bhutto, have together garnered less than 90 seats.
What is good about the outcome is that the PTI, with a help of a few others parties, will be able to form a stable government. It is also evident that the Pakistani military, the real seat of power in Pakistan, will accept Khan’s becoming prime minister with open arms.
Imran Khan will have to deal with a number of issues immediately. Domestic violence, caused by jihadis and political opportunists, casts a shadow on Pakistan’s depleted economy. In addition, in the foreign policy area, Imran Khan will have to deal with the Afghan crisis, which affects Pakistan directly, and is now a focus of Russia, China, India, and Iran, beside the United States. The new government will have to make conditions conducive for implementation of the massive China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and initiate fresh measures to improve its relations with India for mutual benefit.
