FRIDAY, MARCH 1, 2019

Volume 6, Number 42

EIR Daily Alert Service

P.O. Box 17390, Washington, DC 20041-0390

Trump-Kim Summit: Wait Till the Next Round

Trade Representative Lighthizer Testifies in Congress on U.S.-China Trade Deal

Senate Report Objects to China Funding Education in U.S., Charges Schools Are ‘Propaganda Tools’

Retired Air Force General Demands End of U.S. Support to Saudi-Led War in Yemen

Italy’s Finance Minister Tria Affirms Rome Was Blackmailed into Accepting Bail-In Procedures

‘Decarbonization’ of Germany Will Cost between €818 and €1,442 Billion

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EDITORIAL

Act Against War Danger: Expose the Truth on Robert Mueller’s Core Lie, that Russia Hacked the DNC

Feb. 28 (EIRNS)—An international breakdown potential is now active, which has the world on the verge of world war, because of the perpetration of Russiagate, based on complete fraud. Understanding that this British-pedigree subversion operation is based on the specific fabrication that Russia hacked into the Democratic National Committee in 2016, is critical to end the subversion, and terminate the entire geopolitical era. This week, LaRouchePAC has reposted a critical piece of ammunition, the Feb. 13 article by two cyber experts, titled, “Why the DNC Was Not Hacked by the Russians.” The authors are technical experts in data handling: Bill Binney, former Technical Director for the National Security Agency, and Larry Johnson, formerly of the CIA.

The Feb. 26 LaRouchePAC posting, titled, “Bill Binney and Larry Johnson Shred Robert Mueller’s Russian Hack Fable,” has an introduction by Barbara Boyd, saying, “Please read and circulate this article and demand its publication in your local newspaper and on social media. If properly followed up, it can upend the coup and send to jail those responsible for attempting to overthrow the legitimate government of the United States, the one the voters elected in 2016. And this is a matter of war and peace, because the Russian hack false narrative is a central element in fomenting a new and very dangerous Cold War between the United States and Russia. This article must achieve the widest circulation possible prior to Mueller delivering his fictional report.” Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s official report on his “Russia collusion” investigation is now said to likely be out next week.

Schiller Institute President Helga Zepp LaRouche today addressed the war danger, by recounting the view of a fellow participant in a Schiller seminar yesterday in Berlin. Zepp LaRouche’s own presentation at the event was titled, “Strategic Showdown or a New Paradigm.” The participant told Zepp LaRouche that, he does not expect that the U.S. withdrawal from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty will result in immediate placement of U.S. missiles in Europe, but “it opens a Pandora’s box” of instabilities and dangers. He listed many, including that old structures are dissolving, and governments are not putting into place a new system. The U.S. withdrawal can catalyze an uncontrolled armament and conflict situation short term. It sends a “psychological signal” for action in that direction.

To get out of this dangerous dynamic, the unique role of the LaRouche forces, the Schiller Institute and their allies is to present the New Paradigm mode of thinking, as expressed in the New Bretton Woods orientation. This is based on viewing civilization from the vantage point of the future. There is no solution to any problem or conflict by viewing things in terms of present-day Aristotelian contradiction. That means there is no solution to crises in the contrived geometry in which they might appear, whether concerning North Korea, for example, or Venezuela, or Yemen, or Afghanistan. Solutions have to take into account the interests of all involved. That is how to judge true security measures.

Helga Zepp LaRouche laid this out five years ago in her introduction to the EIR Special Report, “The New Silk Road Becomes the World Land-Bridge.” She wrote about ascending to a higher level, for “a new model of cooperation among the nations of the world.” She presented “[Nicholas of] Cusa’s idea of unity in multiplicity, and it must be inspired by a tender love for the idea of the community of nations, for the idea of mankind as the creative species.”

By that measure, look at the shocking spectacle yesterday of the breakdown in culture shown by sleazeball Michael Cohen’s testimony at the Capitol Hill hearing. Add to that the Congressional sleaze and media sleaze as well. This was Grade C mafia movie stuff, but it—not the President’s diplomacy in Hanoi—was the leading news item in all the media. There should be the greatest outrage about this. The Cohen show was set up precisely to overshadow and distract from Donald Trump’s historic meeting with Kim Jong Un. As the President said today, staging the hearing at the same time as his meeting, “was a terrible thing.”

Again, solutions don’t exist in the current geometry, but in acting from the future, and serving the common interests of mankind as a whole. Zepp LaRouche quoted Albert Einstein, “there is never a solution on the level on which the problem arises; always look to a higher level.”

U.S. POLITICAL & ECONOMIC

Trump-Kim Summit: Wait Till the Next Round

Feb. 28 (EIRNS)—As it has been widely reported, the Trump-Kim Summit ended in Hanoi today, without an agreement signed, nor the heads of state having lunch. However, the principals themselves, and first reactions by spokesmen for leading nations—China, Russia, South Korea, and Japan, are speaking in terms of support for continuing momentum toward ultimate success for resolving the situation with North Korea. President Donald Trump spoke to South Korean President Moon Jae-in, by phone from Air Force One; and he spoke with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

The loose, first reports are that North Korea would not do all on nuclear-related measures that the U.S. wanted, and the U.S. would not approve getting rid of all the sanctions which North Korea wanted to happen.

President Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo gave a press conference today before leaving Hanoi. Trump said, “Basically, they wanted the sanctions lifted in their entirety, but we couldn’t do that. They were willing to denuclearize a large portion of the areas we wanted, but we couldn’t give up all of the sanctions for them. So we continue to work and we will see. But we had to walk away from it. All sanctions will remain.” He also expressed hope that eventually the United States and North Korea would become friends, stressing the economic potential of the country, Sputnik reported.

Secretary Pompeo said: “Unfortunately, we didn’t get something that would be helpful to the United States…. We asked him [Kim] to do more, he wasn’t prepared to do that.” He said despite the impasse, the two countries were closer towards finding a solution compared to before the summit.

A more differentiated report-out on sanctions was given by North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho, as quoted by Yonhap news agency. Ri said that North Korea wanted five UN sanctions against the country lifted, but not all of them. Ri also said that Washington, D.C. wanted additional measures on denuclearization from North Korea beyond dismantling the Yongbyon nuclear complex. Ri said that Pyongyang was prepared to permanently halt nuclear and long-range rocket testing.

The early international reactions to the failed summit were mostly sober, but supportive.

China made clear that the U.S.-North Korea dispute cannot be resolved in one or two meetings. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said that China is willing to play a constructive role, and hopes the U.S. and the D.P.R.K. can maintain their talks and respect each other’s concerns. Soon after the Hanoi Summit, D.P.R.K. Vice Foreign Minister Ri Kil Song met in Beijing with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

Russia’s Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that the Kremlin will analyze the outcome, but stated initially that the practice of small mutual steps towards each other is not working, TASS reported.

In South Korea, after Moon and Trump talked by phone, Moon’s Presidential office, Cheong Wa Dae, issued a statement of the exchange, “While expressing disappointment over the failure to reach an agreement in the Summit, President Trump reaffirmed his determination to resolve the issue through dialogue with North Korea in the future…. In addition, [Trump] asked President Moon to actively perform the role of a mediator. That may entail talking with Chairman Kim….” President Moon said he would do all he can. The two spoke of the need for them to meet in person soon, and set diplomatic preparations for that to happen.

From Japan, Prime Minister Abe fully backed U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to end his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un without an agreement. “I fully support President Trump’s decision not to make the easy choice,” Abe said following a telephone call with Trump. “I am determined that I must meet Chairman Kim next,” he further said, reiterating his desire to have a summit with the North Korean leader, Reuters reported from Tokyo.

Trade Representative Lighthizer Testifies in Congress on U.S.-China Trade Deal

Feb. 28 (EIRNS)—U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer testified before the House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee on the China-U.S. trade deal negotiations on Feb. 27.

“We have to have the ability to take proportional action, unilaterally, to make sure we have a situation where they [China] are following an agreement,” Lighthizer said according to Sputnik. “If we can complete this [negotiating] effort, and again I say if, and if we can reach a satisfactory conclusion to the all-important outstanding issue of enforceability as well as some other concerns, we might be able to have an agreement that helps us turn the corner in our economic relationship with China.”

Lighthizer said President Donald Trump would not seek Congressional approval on any deal that is reached with China. “This is a settlement of a 301 action, the President using his power under Section 301, which has been delegated [by Congress] and it’s an executive agreement which the Constitution gives the President the right to enter into,” Lighthizer said. “We have no intention of submitting it to Congress.”

Retired Air Force General Demands End of U.S. Support to Saudi-Led War in Yemen

Feb. 28 (EIRNS)—A retired Air Force general is demanding for the U.S. to end its support of the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen. Maj. Gen. Margaret Woodward (ret.), who commanded the 17th Air Force in Ramstein, Germany over 2010-12—and as such was in direct command of the air operations during the Libya campaign in 2011—argues in an op-ed published in Defense One media site that “the United States should disengage from Riyadh’s strategically counterproductive and morally pernicious war. The human and geopolitical stakes demand as much.” She continues that the war in Yemen can only be ended if all sides agree to pursue a political solution in good faith. “That’s not likely to happen if the United States maintains unconditional support for Saudi Arabia,” she writes.

Woodward refers to the House vote invoking the War Powers Resolution earlier this month to end U.S. military support of the Saudis as “important not only because it rebuked a policy of unconditional support for this calamity, but also because Congressional pressure seems to be playing a clear role in bolstering UN-led peace talks between Yemen’s warring parties.” She urges for Congress to keep the pressure up. “Prospects for peace in Yemen are higher than they’ve been in years. Congress should curtail the Pentagon’s participation in this war, prohibiting in-flight refueling and halting the transfer and licensing of offensive weapons for use by the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, at least until effective conditions are met,” she writes. “Americans should support these restrictions, because ending the war in Yemen is the most effective way to curtail threats from al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups, which have benefitted from Yemen’s instability.”

The picture coming out of the port of Hodeidah, meanwhile, is quite pessimistic, at least as reported by Agence France-Presse yesterday. “War-weary residents of the flashpoint Yemeni port city of Hodeidah have little hope of peace even as the UN regains control of vital food aid warehouses on the front lines,” the AFP report begins. On Feb. 26, a team from the World Food Program did arrive at the Red Sea Mills to assess the condition of the facility and the wheat stored there. “We need sustained access to the mills in order to fumigate the wheat and then start milling it,” said WFP spokesman Herve Verhoosel. “To do that we need safe passage to the mills for WFP staff and the mill workers. It will take weeks of sustained access to the mills to get the facility back to normal operations,” he said.

Senate Report Objects to China Funding Education in U.S., Charges Schools Are ‘Propaganda Tools’

Feb. 28 (EIRNS)—The U.S. Senate’s Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs issued a bipartisan report Feb. 27, condemning the China-funded schools in the United States, labeling them China’s “propaganda tools.”

The 93-page report demands for stringent controls to be placed on learning centers run by the Confucius Institutes, which operates at over 100 U.S. universities and receives funding from the Chinese government’s Ministry of Education. According to Time magazine’s coverage: “If the centers cannot be overhauled, the report says, they should be closed.”

The Confucius Institutes, which runs more than 500 centers globally, says its mission is providing Chinese language and cultural teaching resources and services worldwide, as well as contributing to the development of multiculturalism and the building of a harmonious world.

The Senate report, according to Politico, “blasts the language and cultural centers at more than 100 U.S. universities as too strictly controlled and a threat to academic freedom. It accuses many American colleges of failing to disclose how much money they’ve received from the Chinese government, which the report says has spent more than $158 million on schools in the U.S. since 2006.”

The report also condemns the teaching of Chinese music, language, and culture in grade school and high schools, some in programs called “Confucius Classrooms.”

COLLAPSING WESTERN FINANCIAL SYSTEM

‘Decarbonization’ of Germany Will Cost between €818 and €1,442 Billion

Feb. 28 (EIRNS)—A study by the Research Association for Combustion Engines (FVV) in Germany, released by Dr. Ulrich Kramer on Sept. 27, 2018 in Wurzburg and presented at the annual International Internal Engine Conference in Baden-Baden on Feb. 26-27, has thoroughly explored what it will cost to achieve a 100% decarbonization of the transport sector in Germany by 2050.

Even assuming the unrealistic scenario of a 100% shift to so-called “renewable” energy sources, the study, “Defossilizing the Transportation Sector, Options and Requirements for Germany,” considers three options for such a transition: 1. Direct use of electricity in battery electric powertrains; 2. Hydrogen production by electrolysis and its use in a fuel cell; 3. Use of climate-neutral liquid or gaseous fuels in internal combustion engines. The report estimates the cost for each of these would respectively be: 1. €1,327 billion; 2. €1,442 billion; 3. €818-972 billion.

Italy’s Finance Minister Tria Affirms Rome Was Blackmailed into Accepting Bail-In Procedures

Feb. 28 (EIRNS)—Speaking before the Finance Committee of the Senate, Italian Finance Minister Giovanni Tria reported that the Italian government was blackmailed by Germany, told that if Italy had not accepted the bail-in rule, the news would spread that the Italian banking system was bankrupt.

In Italy “everybody was against” the introduction of the bail-in, Tria said. In the 2013 Letta government, Finance Minister Fabrizio Saccomanni “was practically blackmailed by the German Finance Minister” with the threat that, had Italy not accepted the new system, “the news would spread that our banking system was one step away from bankruptcy,” Tria said.

In a related development, the EU Commission yesterday presented its Country Reports 2019, and Commissioners Valdis Dombrovskis and Pierre Moscovici scolded Italy in the press conference presenting the report.

Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs Moscovici said that the Italian situation is “worrisome” and said the Commission’s message is “loud and clear: [Italy] must improve its government finances, the efficiency of the administration and of the judiciary system and strengthen the banking system.” They especially rejected the pension reform and said the government should have invested more and spent less.

In an interview with La Notizia Giornale published today, economist Nino Galloni said the Commission criticism about investments is “a pretext. Had we carried out a policy of large investments along with less austerity, they would have told us: ‘dear Italians, you cannot afford those investments.’ ” The Commission doesn’t want Italy to recover, Galloni said. “They see a government which is contrary to their interests and hope that nothing happens in the European elections,” i.e., to reflect the discontent with Brussels of the sort that brought Italy’s current government to power. The elections for European Parliament take place in late May.

STRATEGIC WAR DANGER

U.S. and NATO Are Wrecking International Security System, Insists Russia’s Defense Minister Shoigu

Feb. 28 (EIRNS)—Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu presided over a meeting of the Defense Ministry Board Feb. 27, during which he said that the U.S. and NATO are wrecking the system of international security. Shoigu stressed that “at present,” the international situation “is characterized by increased competition between global power centers, increased uncertainty factors, bursts of instability and violence in different regions of the planet, and an increase in conflict potential in areas of Russia’s traditional interests.

“At the same time, the United States is seeking to retain the positions of the superpower, manipulate international law, persistently seek to change the existing conventional arms control regime in Europe in its favor, and also make it difficult for Russia to use its rights under the Treaty on Open Skies,” said Shoigu, as quoted by the Defense Ministry website.

Shoigu also drew attention to the fact that NATO’s military buildup in the Baltic countries, Eastern and Southern Europe continues, and that the scale and intensity of NATO exercises has doubled, and in which Ukraine and Georgia, which are not members of NATO, are becoming increasingly involved. Such actions wreck the existing security system in the world, he said. “In such a situation, we are forced to respond adequately, combining strategic deterrence measures with a planned increase in the combat capabilities of the formations and military units,” he stressed.

Trump Says U.S. Helping To Mediate India-Pakistan Conflict; China Also Expresses Concern

Feb. 28 (EIRNS)—Speaking at the press conference in Hanoi, President Donald Trump expressed concern over the ongoing conflict between India and Pakistan and said the United States was involved in mediation. “We have, I think, reasonably attractive news from Pakistan and India. They’ve been going at it, and we’ve been involved in trying to have them stop…. I think, hopefully, that’s going to be coming to an end,” Trump said, reported the White House.

Chinese Foreign Minister and State Councillor Wang Yi spoke by telephone with Pakistani Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi today expressing concern about rising tensions between Pakistan and India. According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Qureshi called Wang Yi to brief him on the latest developments in the Pakistani-Indian conflict and expressed hope that China would continue playing a constructive role in de-escalating existing tensions, with China’s two neighbors. Wang Yi expressed hope that both sides would exercise restraint and would follow agreements to prevent further escalation and emphasized the need to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states.

The situation between India and Pakistan continues to be tense. For the second day all of Pakistan’s airspace has been closed, including for overflights. The airspace will be temporarily reopened on March 1 at 5:00 a.m. local time (24:00 UTC).

There has been cross-border artillery shelling between Pakistani and Indian forces. India heavily responded to Pakistani artillery attacks on communities in the Jammu and Kashmir state today, Pakistan’s NNI news reported. The artillery shootout lasted about an hour. No injuries were reported.

Pakistan has suspended the operation of the cross-border Samjhauta Express rail line, which connects the Indian railway station Attari with the railway junction in nearby Lahore, Pakistan, reported a Pakistan English-language daily The Dawn.

Pakistani Ambassador to the U.S. Asad Majeed Khan said that Washington’s failure to condemn India for the airstrike on Pakistan has played into the hands of New Delhi. “It is construed and understood as an endorsement of the Indian position and that is what emboldened them even more,” he told reporters Feb. 27. “There is perhaps no other country better placed than the United States to be able to play some role.”

The Ambassador was referring to U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s comments on Feb. 26, in which he described India’s attack on Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) terrorist camps inside Pakistan as “counter-terrorism actions” and called on Pakistan to take “meaningful action against terrorist groups operating on its soil,” while also urging the two countries to forgo further military action. According to India’s news agency Asian News International (ANI), Pompeo told Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s national security adviser Ajit Doval that Washington supports the airstrike on the terror camp.

SCIENCE & INFRASTRUCTURE

NASA Has No New Mars Missions in the Works

Feb. 28 (EIRNS)—NASA is facing a future with no new Mars missions. The only Mars mission that NASA has under development is a Curiosity-sized rover that will launch next year. There are no other approved Mars missions in the pipeline, for the agency that is the only institution to ever safely land a spacecraft on Mars. There is overwhelming agreement in the scientific community that the next big step necessary to further understand Mars is to return samples of rocks and soil for analysis in laboratories on Earth. The next rover will collect the samples of rocks and soil, but there is no plan to bring them back.

Speaking at a virtual meeting of the Mars Exploration Program Analysis Group (MEPAG) Feb. 25, Michael Meyer, lead scientist for NASA’s Mars Exploration Program, said that planning for the series of missions that will return samples to Earth is still in its early stages. “Our hopes are that the 2020 budget will increase so that we can actually start serious planning and moving towards doing missions for a sample return,” he said.

Doesn’t look like it.

In a commentary on Feb. 25 for RealClearPolitics website titled, “Congress Must Join the President in Cutting Spending,” Russ Vought, acting director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, calls for a 5% across-the-board cut in FY20 in non-discretionary spending. For NASA, this means a cut from a budget in FY19 of $21.5 billion, to $20.4 billion. The White House had proposed cuts in NASA’s budget last year, but the Congress upped NASA’s funding instead. Even were the Congress to restore the funding from White House cuts, the money won’t go for Mars missions.

And while the U.S. sits on its hands, it is not the only country planning to explore Mars. The European Space Agency (ESA) and Russia’s space agency Roscosmos are planning to send a rover to Mars next year. China is planning an orbiter and a rover. Japan has an orbiter and lander in the works, and the United Arab Emirates is planning its first Mars orbiter, also in 2020. Two more spacecraft from the Indian and Japanese space agencies are slated to follow in 2022 and 2024, respectively.

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