EDITORIAL

Only Global Solutions, Based on New Principles, Can Work

Nov. 21 (EIRNS)—Any frank assessment of the global situation at this moment must begin with a clear recognition that the entire trans-Atlantic financial system is hopelessly bankrupt, and must be replaced by an entirely new architecture.  The too-big-to-fail banks are all dead, starting with Deutsche Bank, the Royal Bank of Scotland and all of the Wall Street TBTF institutions.  The Wall Street bank holding companies are holding $252 trillion in derivatives exposure, with only $14 trillion in dubious capital backing up those volatile gambling bets.  The Italian banks are run by a criminal oligarchy, as the Italian population is being hard hit with murderous austerity.  The same is true in France and elsewhere throughout Europe.

What is needed is a totally new credit system, drawing upon those regions of the world—principally Eurasia—where genuine growth in productivity is taking place.  Such a global reorganization is the only way to save entire nations that are now dying.  The key question is: How will major powers, particularly China, Russia and the United States, adjust to what is now feasible in the emerging post-Obama circumstances?  Face it: Obama is political poison and the sooner that he is gone from the political scene, the sooner that the needed changes can be launched.

Clearly the immediate reinstatement of Glass-Steagall is the vital first step, but it must be recognized that, as the result of the policies of the last decades—particularly the last 16 years of Bush and Obama—a great deal of damage has been done, and it will be difficult to quickly undo the damage.

Germany can be a keystone for these changes, but Merkel has got to stop her protection of an already-dead system of trans-Atlantic power.  She should give Russian President Putin the space to operate.  If Putin and Trump can establish direct contact and work out some solutions, it will work.  Eurasia is already operating in a way that is boosting genuine productivity. Much of the rest of the world, however, is starving.  Putin understands these successes of Eurasia—he knows Asia is far better off than Europe.  Trump has an instinct to understand the same thing.

The model that must be adopted is the actions taken by President Franklin Roosevelt in his first hundred days in office. This is going to require some hard kicking by a concert of world leaders.  But it can and must be done.  There is no alternative.

This was a major subject during the just-concluded APEC heads of state summit in Lima, Peru, where Chinese President Xi Jinping has also made state visits to Ecuador, Peru and Chile a part of his itinerary, and where a mobilization is underway to build the trans-oceanic railroad, linking the Atlantic coast of Brazil with the Pacific coast of Peru.

U.S. POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC

Tulsi Gabbard Meets with Donald Trump Regarding Syria

Nov. (EIRNS)—Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI), who served two tours of combat duty in Iraq before running for U.S. Congress, and who serves in the Army National Guard with the rank of Major, today met with Donald Trump on national security measures regarding Syria. Gabbard, a staunch supporter of Glass-Steagall and Bernie Sanders during the campaign, actually resigned her post at the Hillary Clinton-controlled Democratic National Committee after publicly endorsing Sanders. ABC News is reporting that the Congresswoman “is being looked at as a candidate for secretary of state, secretary of defense or United Nations ambassador.”

After the meeting with Trump, she released this statement on her website:

“President-elect Trump asked me to meet with him about our current policies regarding Syria, our fight against terrorist groups like al-Qaeda and ISIS, as well as other foreign policy challenges we face. I felt it important to take the opportunity to meet with the President-elect now before the drumbeats of war that neocons have been beating drag us into an escalation of the war to overthrow the Syrian government—a war which has already cost hundreds of thousands of lives and forced millions of refugees to flee their homes in search of safety for themselves and their families.

“While the rules of political expediency would say I should have refused to meet with President-elect Trump, I never have and never will play politics with American and Syrian lives.

“Serving the people of Hawai’i and our nation is an honor and responsibility that I do not take lightly. Representing the aloha spirit and diversity of the people of Hawai’i, I will continue to seek common ground to deliver results that best serve all Americans, as I have tried to do during my time in Congress.

“Where I disagree with President-elect Trump on issues, I will not hesitate to express that disagreement. However, I believe we can disagree, even strongly, but still come together on issues that matter to the American people and affect their daily lives. We cannot allow continued divisiveness to destroy our country.

“President-elect Trump and I had a frank and positive conversation in which we discussed a variety of foreign policy issues in depth. I shared with him my grave concerns that escalating the war in Syria by implementing a so-called no fly/safe zone would be disastrous for the Syrian people, our country, and the world. It would lead to more death and suffering, exacerbate the refugee crisis, strengthen ISIS and al-Qaeda, and bring us into a direct conflict with Russia which could result in a nuclear war. We discussed my bill to end our country’s illegal war to overthrow the Syrian government, and the need to focus our precious resources on rebuilding our own country, and on defeating al-Qaeda, ISIS, and other terrorist groups who pose a threat to the American people.

“For years, the issue of ending interventionist, regime change warfare has been one of my top priorities. This was the major reason I ran for Congress—I saw firsthand the cost of war, and the lives lost due to the interventionist warmongering policies our country has pursued for far too long.

“Let me be clear, I will never allow partisanship to undermine our national security when the lives of countless people lay in the balance.”

Robert Kagan Throws in the Towel, Complains U.S. Is Becoming ‘Solipsistic’

Nov. 21 (EIRNS)—Robert Kagan, the neocon husband of “Maidan maiden” Victoria Nuland, must be suffering a near breakdown. From a high four years ago—when his book The World America Made (arguing against a retrenching of America’s global influence), was seen in the hands of President Obama on the campaign trail, and served as the basis for Obama’s hawkish 2013 State of the Union speech—to today, when President-elect Trump is ready to talk peace with Putin’s Russia, no doubt Kagan is suffering a major let-down.

It all came pouring out, today, in an article in posted by the City of London’s Financial Times, “Trump Marks the End of America as World’s Indispensable Nation.” Kagan argues that, with a Trump victory, America is collapsing, even beyond isolationism, to “national solipsism, with a much narrower definition of American interests and a reluctance to act in the world except to protect those narrow interests.” In what for this imperialist is the ultimate sign of defeat, “America may once again start behaving like a normal nation.”

Far from the “enlightenment” which led America to keep 70 military bases around the world, “to protect our allies,” by choosing Trump, we have “chosen, like in 1920, a return to normalcy, [where nations] are judged not by whether they are allies or nominal adversaries, democracies or autocracies, only by their willingness to fight Islamists. Mr. Putin’s Russia, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s Egypt, Bashar al-Assad’s Syria, Israel: all are equal partners in the fight,” Kagan says. Perhaps most depressing to him, which he adds in a parenthesis: “(Note to U.S. hawks: there will be no bombing of Iran under a Trump administration.)”

Finally, overcome by the thought that “Americans after 1920 managed to avoid global responsibility for two decades,” he reaches for one of the muffins his wife keeps handy for these occasions.

War Party Moving To Preempt Trump-Putin Reset

Nov. 21 (EIRNS)—Josh Rogin reports in the Washington Post today that a bipartisan group of Congressmen and Senators are planning to take actions to block any serious attempt by Trump to reset relations with Russia.  John McCain and Lindsey Graham are taking the point in opposing a shift towards cooperation with Russia. They are planning to lead a Congressional delegation to Ukraine, Georgia, and Estonia, to reassure those countries that the U.S. will remain their ally against Russian “aggression.”  They will be holding a series of hearings beginning in January on Russian transgressions in Syria, the Baltics and in the cyber-warfare area.  Graham, according to Rogin, also intends to use his chairmanship of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Foreign Operations to finance European allies in their efforts to block Russian advances.

Ben Cardin, the ranking Democrat on Senate Foreign Relations Committee will also introduce bills to increase funding of the European Democracy Initiative.  House bills are also being prepared to impose new sanctions on Russia.

CSIS European Program director Heather Conley told Rogin that Congress is moving preemptively to limit President-elect Trump’s ability to move toward cooperation with Putin and Russia. And the Atlantic Council has published a new report, detailing how Russia has worked overtly and covertly to build up pro-Russian political parties and factions in Europe, including in Britain, France and Germany.  Former Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski wrote the introduction to the Atlantic Council report, and he wrote that any overtures to Russia are doomed to fail because of Russia’s core commitment to exploit the weaknesses in Western political systems: “The Kremlin’s blatant attempts to influence and disrupt the U.S. presidential election should serve as an inspiration for a democratic push back.”

Rogin noted that Trump will have a few allies in his effort to improve U.S.-Russian relations, including Sen. Rand Paul and Rep. Dana Rohrabacher.

STRATEGIC WAR DANGER

Syrian Army Makes More Progress in Aleppo

Nov. 21 (EIRNS)—While Western news reporting continues to paint a picture of indiscriminate Russian/Syrian bombing targeting hospitals in east Aleppo, what emerges from the reporting of Al Masdar News (AMN) is a deliberate military campaign by the Syrian Arab Army intended to liberate the districts of eastern Aleppo from the jihadis. On Saturday, Nov. 19, the Syrian army launched an assault into the jihadi-held northern districts of eastern Aleppo from three different axes, while army units in the western neighborhoods continued to push Jaish al Fateh farther away from eastern Aleppo. With the jihadis were thus occupied, the Syrian army’s Tiger Forces assaulted and captured the Tal Al-Zuhour hilltop, an industrial district overlooking those northern districts on the east side of the jihadi-held pocket.

This morning, the Syrian army was reported to be beating back a jihadi counterattack on Tal Al-Zuhour. Once that’s done, the Tiger Forces are expected to resume their penetration into the adjacent districts. At the same time, the army is on the offensive in the Sheikh Sa’eed district at the southern end of the jihadi-held pocket.

The latest attacks by the Syrian Arab Army in the southern Aleppo sector are geared towards breaking the jihadist resolve around Sheikh Sa’eed, Khan Touman (to the southwest), and the Rashhideen neighborhoods to the west, reports Al Masdar. At the northern end of the pocket, the army was reported yesterday to be fighting inside the Bustan Al-Basha, Ba’ibdeen, and Hanano districts. The army reportedly now controls 75% of Bustan Al-Basha, which had been, for an extended period of time, a jihadi stronghold.

COLLAPSING WESTERN FINANCIAL SYSTEM

Duterte Gives OK to Nuclear Power for Philippines

Nov. 21 (EIRNS)—Philippine President Duterte, just a few weeks after saying he would not approve nuclear power development during his term, has changed his view after studying a competent analysis and proposal presented to him by his Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi, it was reported on Nov. 11.

Duterte had been accosted by anti-nuclear greenies, who induced him to put nuclear power issues aside, but has now been persuaded by an honest appraisal that the country must proceed with restoring the mothballed Bataan Nuclear Power Plant, closed under orders from the U.S. after its completion in 1984, then mothballed when Ferdinand Marcos was removed in 1986.

Secretary Cusi had attended the IAEA conference on nuclear power in the Asia Pacific held in Manila in September, where he met Philippine LaRouche Society founder Butch Valdes, who spoke at the conference on the urgency of reopening the Bataan nuclear plant and proceeding to further nuclear production as the necessary basis for building the nation from its current ruinous state.

Longer-term proposals being considered include construction of the #2 plant at Bataan, for which the foundation has already been laid, back in the 1980s, and to procure small modular reactors for use on the islands south of Luzon.

Europe Will Suffer from Maintaining Russia Sanctions

Nov. 21 (EIRNS)—In an interview with the Vienna daily, Kurier, Moscow City foreign economic and international relations department Sergey Cheremin said he expects a President Donald Trump to improve relations with Russia, whereas he is not so sure whether the EU will change its Russia policies. “I personally believe that Trump will proceed very pragmatically. He has not made aggressive remarks about Russia. For Europe, however, a critical situation might develop. If relations between the U.S.A. and Russia improve and the EU keeps the sanctions in place, Europe is in danger of isolating itself.”

The sanctions came under attack also in Germany: Wolfgang Büchele, chairman of German industry’s “Ost-Ausschuss der Deutschen Wirtschaft” (Committee on Eastern European Economic Relations) wrote in an op-ed for the Handelsblatt business daily today that “the time has come to call the sanctions into question.” As for the officially proclaimed “priority of policy” over trade with Russia, “it would be good if that priority were used to primarily find political solutions for political crises and not burden it on the economy.” The Russia sanctions have not achieved anything in Russia, but they have caused immense losses in the triple-digit-billion range for Europe. Poland, the three Baltic states, and also Germany and Austria have suffered enormously from the sanctions, Büchele said. Germany alone has seen a net loss of €13.5 billion in trade with Russia, which is equivalent of the loss of 60,000 jobs.

The sanctions were also attacked in Italy, by lawmakers from the M5S party: Deputy Paola Carinelli said during a visit to Moscow last week that the Italian economy has net losses of €7 billion and 200,000 lost jobs. M5S Sen. Vito Petrocelli made similar remarks that “the sanctions were wrong from the start. Much of that has violated the rights and interests of Italian enterprises. There has been absolutely no benefit from the sanctions. Our small and medium-sized enterprises no longer have any chance to work with Russian partners.”

THE NEW GLOBAL ECONOMIC ORDER

Former Chilean Diplomat Confirmed, ‘We Will Joyfully Welcome Xi Jinping’

Nov. 21 (EIRNS)—This Nov. 17 statement to Xinhua from Fernando Reyes Matta, Chile’s former ambassador to China, reflects the great optimism and excitement expressed by many Chilean and Chinese officials and businessmen looking forward to Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to Santiago Nov. 22-23.

The emphasis is on consolidating a relationship that will operate at the highest level, across many sectors—economics, trade, industry, infrastructure, science and technology. Wang Hexing, president of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce in Chile, told the official Global Times Nov. 17 that China’s One Belt, One Road Initiative has been key in diversifying bilateral trade, adding that “industrial ties are becoming more common.” Tan Meng, a senior engineer with China Railway Eryuan Engineering Group Co., Ltd, (CREEC), the same company that produced the feasibility study for the proposed bioceanic rail corridor between Brazil and Peru, told Xinhua that his company has trained Chilean professionals in “engineering, construction and management.”

Reyes Matta underscored that Chile has always sought means by which the “China-Latin America dialogue, and particularly the China-Chile [dialogue], could acquire increasingly interesting and novel characteristics.” The potential in the bilateral relationship is unlimited, he said. “We have new subjects [to discuss], new potentialities to dream, create and imagine with our feet placed in the 21st century to develop both nations.”

As for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, Reyes Matta suggested that “it’s time for Latin America and China to discover the meaning of the word ‘innovation’ … we have to learn what China’s transformation means.” He pointed out that Xi Jinping’s 2014 speeches “speak of innovation with his proposals … to advance toward development with new areas of knowledge, science and transformation….” That, Reyes Matta said, “is China’s development model, China, whose fundamental principles are related to the development of advanced science and technology.” Ibero-America must develop “the ability to create knowledge,” Reyes insisted.

The Bachelet government has made deepening ties with China a policy of state. Santiago is today the site of the Regional Center for Confucius Institutes of Latin America, set up two years ago, Xinhua reported today. Thousands of students study Chinese and learn about Chinese culture at these institutes, which exist throughout Ibero-America. Last year, the Bachelet government sponsored “China Week”—now an annual event—to educate citizens about Chinese culture and business opportunities, among other things.

Duterte and Putin Establish Philippines-Russia Cooperation

Nov. 21 (EIRNS)—Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte and Russia’s President Vladimir Putin have established cooperation between their two nations during their meeting in Peru this past weekend. There has been little trade between the two countries in the past, as Russian imports, mostly food and beer, were only $46 million last year. According to Philippine Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez, as reported in Malaya, Russia has committed to significantly boost its imports from the Philippines to about $2.5 billion, while Russia has offered the Philippines potential trade and investment partnerships in the fields of energy, machine engineering, energy equipment, railway, monorail and port infrastructure. Lopez added that cooperation in the areas of training and supplies for law enforcement, counterterrorism, anti-narcotics, national emergency, education, finance and market access were also forged.

Duterte earlier indicated that Russia is a likely source for military purchases as well, rather than dependence on the U.S., although this was not mentioned in the reports from Peru.

After his brief but friendly meeting with China’s President Xi Jinping in Lima, where the two further agreed to cooperation rather than conflict in the South China Sea, Duterte has announced that he is proposing a “no-fishing” zone be established in the lagoon of the Scarborough Shoal, confining fishing to the deeper waters outside the lagoon, and declaring the lagoon to be a marine sanctuary.

The Chinese Navy’s restraint of Philippine fishing vessels from the Shoal was lifted after Duterte’s successful visit to China in October. China has not responded to Duterte’s new proposal.

OTHER

François Fillon, Pro-Russian Thatcherite, Wins First Round of French Right-Wing Presidential Primary

PARIS, Nov. 21 (EIRNS)—Taking the pollsters and media by surprise, once again, François Fillon, who was running third in France’s center and right-wing Presidential primaries, won the first round of the primary by a landslide this weekend. Fillon got 43%, Alain Juppé, 26%, and Nicolas Sarkozy, 21%. So, Sarkozy is out, and Fillon will, in all likelihood, be elected on the second round of the primaries of their party, Les Républicains.

In a different way, there are striking similarities with the Trump election. Fillon, who had been President Sarkozy’s prime minister from 2007-12,  is a friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin, has attended both the Valdai Discussion Club and the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum several times. A cold-headed individual, he has nonetheless steadily called for collaboration with Russia overall, and in the Middle East in particular.

His performance blocked the election of Alain Juppé, a kind of right-wing version of the Socialists’ Hollande, whom the NATO establishment seemed to have been betting on.

Another similarity is that Fillon got the right-wing Catholics highly mobilized against gay marriage, enacted by the Socialists, and is against radical Islam. Fillon is promising to roll back the gay marriage law.

Besides that, however, there is no attempt by Fillon to paint himself as a Franklin Roosevelt; quite the contrary. All three right-wing candidates ran on thoroughly neoliberal platforms. Fillon is the worst of them, running on an explicitly Thatcherite policy, promising to lay off 500-600,000 public workers, and to implement €100-€120 billion in budget cuts.