EDITORIAL

Helga Zepp-LaRouche: Merkel Represents the Old No-Future Paradigm, Germany Needs the Silk Road

Nov. 26 (EIRNS)—“Heinrich Heine’s famous concern comes to mind: ‘When I think of Germany in the night…’ Indeed, where is Germany headed, or rather, where is it drifting? The fact that Angela Merkel is going to run for a fourth term is not reassuring. Contrary to the impression she is attempting to create, four more years of a Merkel government are no promise of stability, but the opposite.”

Thus begins an appeal issued by the chair of the Schiller Institute, Helga Zepp-LaRouche, on Nov. 26, asking the German population to help her bring the country into the “new paradigm.”

Both the Brexit in the U.K. and the U.S. election of Donald Trump, she notes, are expressions of the rejection of the entire paradigm of neo-liberal “globalization,” “which is just a synonym for the Anglo-American empire. That ‘globalization’ had led to the impoverishment of growing sections of the population to the benefit of the financial oligarchy, in all countries that have been subjected to the rules of neo-liberal monetarism. That ‘globalization’, i.e., the City of London and Wall Street’s claim to unipolar supremacy over the world, is responsible for a whole series of wars based on lies, from Afghanistan to Iraq, Libya, Syria and Yemen, which caused the refugee catastrophe. ‘Globalization’ also means color revolutions, a policy of regime change against democratically elected governments, such as in Ukraine; it means the eastward expansion and encirclement policy of NATO and the EU, and it likely would have brought us sooner rather than later into a global confrontation with Russia and China under a Hillary Clinton administration.

“Chancellor Merkel and the shocked German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen represent this losing paradigm, and the idea of four more years—with no change in policy and with absolutely no vision for the future—does not mean stability, but escalating political divisiveness in Germany and the disintegration of an EU in rebellion. With the next financial crisis which is bound to come, the duo of Merkel and her Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble is sure to foist the costs on the citizens once again, and risk chaos by so doing. The fragility of the abominable refugee deal with Turkey’s Erdogan and various governments in Africa promises that it will only be a matter of time before this crisis explodes again.

“Merkel represents this paradigm, which is irreversibly sinking. Just like the 304 members of the European Parliament who just voted up a resolution accusing Russia of conducting massive anti-European propaganda, she supports an EU and NATO policy which does exactly what they accuse Russia of doing. We must put an end once and for all to the logic of the Cold War.”

The next U.S. President has already said he wants to improve relations with Russia and China, and he might be brought to cooperate with China’s Silk Road policy, which Zepp-LaRouche goes on to outline. This is the policy she and her husband have been fighting for for over 25 years, and that she asks for Germans to support.

“To create a real perspective and alternatives for Germany, we don’t need an Alternative für Deutschland party which has no solutions to offer, but together with me, you can put cooperation with the U.S., Russia and China in building the New Silk Road on the agenda. It is only through such cooperation that we can develop the Middle East and Africa with a New Silk Road-Marshall Plan, and thus solve the refugee crisis humanely. That is moreover what Gen. Michael Flynn, Trump’s new National Security Advisor, already called for in April 2015.”

This is the policy for peace Germany should commit to, while contributing to the needed dialogue of cultures, on the highest level, that must accompany the new world economic order. Finally, Helga Zepp-LaRouche calls on all citizens to fight with her in ensuring that this extraordinary opportunity is seized in and for Germany.

STRATEGIC WAR DANGER

French Presidential Pre-Candidate Fillon Vows He’ll Re-Start Dialogue with Russia

Nov. 25 (EIRNS)—French Republican Presidential pre-candidate François Fillon said that if he were elected he would immediately reverse the government’s dangerous policy against Russia and open a dialogue with Russia. The comments were made during his debate with rival candidate in the Republicans primary, Alain Juppé. Both Fillon and Juppé are former prime ministers.

“I think that François Hollande’s policies in the past four years regarding Russia, are absurd. They force Russia to take a harsher stance, to isolate itself, to trigger a nationalist reflex,” Fillon said. “Russia is the world’s biggest country, armed to its teeth with nuclear weapons and, therefore, poses danger if treated the way we have been doing it in the past five years,” he continued, according to TASS, which did not report where he made the statement. “I demand that we sit at the negotiating table with Russia, without waiting for a permission from the Americans, and that we try to restore ties.”

Pointing to the growing economic strength of Asia as being Europe’s main concern, Fillon added: “It is not a military threat, but a threat of global economic domination. Would it be wise to use the policy of sanctions, which produced no result apart from harming French farmers, in order to push Russia closer to Asia? I think that this policy has failed, and it’s time to admit it.”

As for Syria, Fillon said that Europe needs to include Russia, Iran and the government of Bashar Assad in the talks to end the conflict, according to another TASS report yesterday. “Did our actions help to put an end to this violence? No, and we have to admit it and start looking for another way to act,” he said.

During the televised debates before the second round of primaries on Nov. 27, Fillon specified again: “In order to stop this war, we need to involve Russia in negotiations with Europe. We need to talk with Iran because, regardless of the country’s flaws, it plays a key role in the Syrian conflict. We also need to finally accept the idea that, possibly, a certain kind of interim agreement will be concluded in order to seal the status quo and at least stop the violence.” While Fillon pushed Thatcherite economic policies, a spot poll showed that 57% of the viewers thought he won the debate.

Europeans Call for New Arms Talks with Russia

Nov. 26 (EIRNS)—The Foreign Ministers of 14 European countries have signed a statement calling for the re-opening of arms control talks with Russia and warned that the existing arms control regimes with Russia are crumbling. While the statement puts the burden of blame on Russia alone, it is a clear reflection of the continuing fear of a new European war, unless some sane actions are taken to reopen dialogue with Moscow.

“Confronted with the increasingly unstable security situation in Europe, we see an urgent need to re-establish strategic stability, restraint, predictability and verifiable transparency and to reduce military risks,” it asserts. The ministers “are convinced that a relaunch of conventional arms control is one important path towards a genuine and effective cooperative security allowing for peace and stability on our continent.”

According to Britain’s Guardian, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier organized this initiative in his capacity as president of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. The 14 signers—Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland—cut across both NATO and the EU. Steinmeier told Die Welt that Europe’s security was in danger. “As difficult as ties to Russia may currently be, we need more dialogue, not less. We have a responsibility to leave no stone unturned in our effort to increase security and peace.”

The U.S. State Department responded with the Obama Administration’s usual “our way or the highway” arrogance. “While the United States commends Germany for drawing European attention to the need for more robust conventional arms control, until those key principles are being adhered to by Russia, it will not be possible to have productive European arms control negotiations,” an unnamed State Department official told TASS.

Impeachment of South Korea’s President Park May End THAAD Deployment

Nov. 26 (EIRNS)—Nearly 2 million people took to the streets in South Korea—about 1.5 million in downtown Seoul and more around the country, despite snow and cold weather—demanding that President Park Geun-hye resign. Legislators are planning to file an impeachment motion within the next two weeks. Many of Park’s supporters failed to show up for a meeting of the government party to discuss the situation, and her factional opponents mostly supported the impeachment drive by the opposition parties. Park’s support fell to 4% in the most recent polls.

South Korea, however, signed an intelligence-sharing agreement with Japan this week, despite opposition within South Korea which had postponed the agreement several times in the past. However, both that deal and the U.S. deployment of THAAD missiles may be scrapped as part of the moves against President Park, especially if it is confirmed, as charged by leading opposition legislator An Mik-suk, that Park’s confidant at the center of the crisis, Choi Soon-sil, was in fact responsible for Park’s decision to deploy the THAAD. Choi was accused of having ties to Lockheed Martin, which produces the THAAD.

With probably not-coincidental timing, the Tokyo government leaked to the Japanese daily Yomiuri Shimbun on Nov. 25 that its Defense Ministry will set up a committee to study possible deployment of THAADs in Japan.

U.S. POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC

Obama Expands Joint Special Operations Command Anti-Terrorist Mission

Nov. 26 (EIRNS)—The Obama Administration has given the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) “expanded power to track, plan and potentially launch attacks on terrorist cells around the globe,” the Washington Post reported yesterday. This will shift JSOC from being mostly an anti-terrorism tool of regional commanders, into functioning more as a global combat command. In some parts of the world, JSOC will work with U.S. allies, but in “other parts of the world, with weak or no governments, JSOC could act unilaterally.”

JSOC is a subcommand of the U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) commanded by Army Gen. Raymond “Tony” Thomas. According to the Post report, Obama’s directive will turn Thomas into a decision-maker when it comes to going after threats under the task force’s purview. While Thomas will help guide certain decisions, the operations will ultimately have to be approved by the White House and the Pentagon. “Now [Thomas] can request whatever he wants and … unless there’s some other higher competing priority, the combatant commanders have to cough it up,” said a former senior defense official. For the most part, the relationship between SOCOM and the geographic combatant commands had been the other way around, that is, SOCOM was a provider of support to the combatant commands.

What remains to be seen is whether or not the incoming Trump Administration will retain this or other “anti-terror” structures that have been put in place by the Obama Administration.

Another Tall Tale from the Queen’s Footmen

Nov. 27 (EIRNS)—So-called leading publications are suddenly spreading the tall tale (in the name of the fight against “fake news,” of all things), that Vladimir Putin is running hundreds of American websites, through which he spreads Russian disinformation and influenced the Presidential election.  The Washington Post’s version of this chaos operation was dated Nov. 24, under Craig Timberg’s byline, and titled, “Russian Propaganda Effort Helped Spread ‘Fake News’ During Election, Experts Say.” Much of Timberg’s “expertise” comes from a website started in 2016 called “PropOrNot,”— meaning, “is it [Russian] PROPaganda OR NOT?”  This website includes not one single name of anyone responsible for any of the paranoid nonsense it carries. Among other crazy allegations, it features what it calls “an initial set of sites that reliably echo Russian propaganda,”—of well over 100 websites.  They include popular news aggregator Drudge Report, and the websites of former Reagan officials David Stockman and Paul Craig Roberts, along with Zero Hedge, Naked Capitalism, OpEdNews, and Consortiumnews.com, among numerous other ridiculous entries.

Timberg interviewed the “executive director” of PropOrNot, but granted him anonymity. Why anonymity? Because the “executive director” was afraid he would be attacked on the internet if his name became known!

The other source of Timberg’s “expertise,” and that of other journalists who have recently published parallel articles, is the Foreign Policy Research Institute, FPRI, of Philadelphia. Founded by émigré Viennese geopolitician Robert Strausz-Hupé in 1955, FPRI has been a focal point of British imperial control throughout its history, while all the while openly dedicating itself to controlling U.S. government policy, rather than to academic research.  It was here that British agent William Yandell Elliott mentored his dupes Henry Kissinger and Zbigniew Brzezinski.  In the ’50s, FPRI pushed hard for military confrontation with the Soviets.  After the demise of the Soviet Union, FPRI focussed on support of the Israeli right wing, and campus witch-hunts against pro-Palestinians, under Daniel Pipes.

NEW GLOBAL ECONOMIC ORDER

Peruvian Economists Conclude ‘We Share Helga Zepp-LaRouche’s Perspective on World Development’

Nov. 25 (EIRNS)—In a document summarizing the results of the Nov. 17-19 XXIII National Congress of the Peruvian Association of Economists, Roberto Vela Pinedo, the Dean of the Association of Economists of Ucayali (which hosted the event), wrote:

“We economists of Peru, gathered in the city of Pucallpa, informing national and international public opinion of our position regarding the current situation of the country and the world, state the following:

“1) That, analyzing the keynote address presented to us by Dr. Helga Zepp-LaRouche, we share the perspective on world development that her message presented, and which can be seen at the following link: Como financiar el desarrollo

After this opening point of emphasis, Vela went on in his message—which was sent to all 24 regional Economists Associations in Peru, which have some 20,000 members—to write:

“6) To overcome this crisis, the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), led by China and Russia, proposed and initiated the construction of a new financial architecture directed at developing nations’ physical economies, in a sovereign relationship in which everyone wins, the ‘win-win’ strategy, that demolishes the ancien régime’s zero-sum game, under which some win and others lose… Peru must join this process in order to achieve growth.

“7) We must restructure the state’s economic policy and replace the neoliberal model with a model of development of productive transformation with equity…

“8) We need to apply science, technology and innovation in our economic development, as the basis for being competitive…

“11) We must create a Ministry of Strategic Planning to formulate the vision of the country we wish to be… and have a new Ministry of Technology and Production…

“16) The first great step along the path of industrial development and the promotion of scientific and technological capabilities, is that Peru, as a paradigmatic example of this new sovereign relationship in which everyone wins … should approve the proposal of the government of the Popular Republic of China to build a trans-continental railroad along the Northern Route, which would link the ports of Santos in Brazil and Bayovar in Peru, emphasizing the development of hundreds of complementary projects, such as: agriculture, agro-industry, manufacturing, fishing, ports, nuclear energy, petrochemicals, scientific and technological innovation, road infrastructure, the creation of new intelligent cities, and the creation of thousands of jobs, etc.

“After four days of deliberations, we have agreed to demand that the central government [of Peru] accept and promote the construction of this mega-project, given that it is the only one at this time focused on continental integration, and which already has a signed Memorandum of Understanding among the governments of the China, Brazil and Peru.”

China Policy Paper on Latin America, Caribbean Stresses ‘Expanding Common Interests’

Nov. 25 (EIRNS)—Coinciding with the conclusion of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s tour of Ibero-America, China’s Foreign Ministry yesterday issued a wide-ranging policy paper on Latin America and the Caribbean, describing it as a “blueprint for the future” based on “new ideas, proposals and initiatives in China’s Latin America and Caribbean policy for the new era.” The Foreign Ministry’s last policy paper on this subject was issued in 2008.

As the world is undergoing “unprecedented historical changes, with multipolarity and globalization gaining momentum,” the document states, China stands ready “to promote the construction of a new type of international relations with win-win cooperation at the core, and forge a community of shared future.” Here, China’s relations with Latin America and the Caribbean are in “the new stage of comprehensive cooperation.”

In the four sections which follow, the document describes in great detail an array of areas in which comprehensive cooperation is planned, beginning with the characterization in Part I, of Latin America and the Caribbean as “a Land Full of Vitality and Hope.” It pinpoints the July, 2014 BRICS summit in Brazil as the takeoff point for the “comprehensive and cooperative partnership,” reflected in the establishment of the China-Celac Forum, (Celac is the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States) as a crucial vehicle for policy coordination.

This partnership “serves as a shining example of developing countries working together to seek common development,” they write. Financial and technical aid is offered without any political conditionalities. Poverty reduction will be a key goal. Chinese companies are encouraged, and will be provided the financial means, to invest in the region or establish branches there. The document adds, in obvious reference to the U.S., that China’s aid to, and relationship with, this region is in no way directed toward, or intended to exclude, “third parties.”

Part IV of the document, entitled “Further Strengthening Cooperation in All Fields,” provides the most detailed description of China’s planned contribution to the economic development of Latin America and the Caribbean, spanning projects in manufacturing cooperation, engineering, infrastructure building, science and technology and aerospace, to name a few. In the latter area, it underscores it “will pay full attention to the role of space technology as a driving force for the scientific, technological and industrial development of Latin American and Caribbean countries.” Cooperation in science and technology innovation includes nuclear energy, civil aviation, building R&D centers, high-tech parks and joint laboratories, among others. Manufacturing cooperation will include projects “which will cover the whole industrial chain,” allowing both sides to “increase local employment, upgrade the level of industrialization and promote local economic and social development.”

SCIENCE AND INFRASTRUCTURE

International Space Conference in China Brings Together Developing Countries

Nov. 27 (EIRNS)—The International Academy of Astronautics (whose leaders spoke at the June 25-26, 2016 Schiller Institute conference in Berlin) and the China International Exchange Center for Astronautical R&D, with support from the China National Space Administration and the Chinese aerospace industry, held a conference in Beijing on Nov. 25, titled: “IAA Symposium on Space International Cooperation Promoting Economic and Social Development of Developing Countries.” It is reported that there were 180 top-level space representatives participating, with speakers from Nigeria, Venezuela, Pakistan, Laos, Bolivia, Brazil, Peru, and Italy, along with many from China. Topics ranged from overviews of various countries’ space programs, to more detailed discussions of space applications in agriculture, earthquake monitoring, and also manned space exploration.

Fu Zhiheng, Vice President of China Great Wall Industry which handles all of the commercial space contracts with other countries, spoke on the sidelines of the conference on the satellites China has built and launched for other countries, naming Pakistan and Venezuela, China.org.cn reported. Fu said one of the attractions for customers is that China Great Wall Industry can provide “solution packages” to developing countries, that cover the design, manufacture, launch, and operation of a satellite, and also the training of the client nation’s manpower.

He also commented, “In addition to traditional clients, we pay great attention to finding new customers. For instance, we are striving to tap the space market in the Middle East, that is dominated by United States and European firms.” He reported “substantial progress” in that region.

Brazil’s Eletronuclear Turns To China To Finish Third Nuclear Plant

Nov. 27 (EIRNS)—Bruno Barretto, acting president of Brazil’s state nuclear company Electronuclear, announced on Nov. 23 that he will be traveling to China in December to meet with officials from China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) and State Nuclear Power Technology Company (SNPTC), as well as the state development banks, about having China come in to help finish Brazil’s third nuclear plant, Angra 3.

Angra 3 was begun in 1984; shut in 1986 and mothballed for over two decades by foreign-run anti-nuclear assault; finally restarted in 2010 and was projected to enter service in 2015. But all construction was halted again earlier this year by the bankers’ ”Lava Jato” (Operation Carwash) “anti-corruption” hit squad, which sent Eletronuclear president Adm. Othon Pinheiro to jail for 43 years. Currently Angra 3’s projected completion is for sometime after 2020, despite its being 60% completed.

Because the Brazilian companies contracted to build the plant are blacklisted from working on the project on the pretext of corruption, Eletronuclear has been searching for months for foreign companies willing to assume the construction contracts held by those Brazilian companies. Barretto reported that Eletronuclear has spoken to other international firms, but only the Chinese are open to further talks.

Barretto reiterated that foreign companies cannot operate nuclear plants in Brazil by law; the contracts under discussion are for construction only.

Russia To Build a Vaccine-Production Plant in Ecuador’s ‘City of Knowledge,’ Yachay

Nov. 27 (EIRNS)—Ecuador’s Foreign Minister Guillaume Long announced from Moscow on Nov. 13, that the prestigious St. Petersburg Vaccine and Serums Institute of Russia will invest $30 million to build a vaccine and serum-production plant in Ecuador’s “City of Knowledge,” Yachay, that will be capable of producing vaccines and serums for both domestic as well as regional use.

Long was in Moscow participating in a meeting among the four-nation leadership group of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (Celac) and Russian government authorities, and finalized the agreement in a meeting with Victor Trukhin, director of the St. Petersburg Institute, according to a Foreign Ministry press release.

The St. Petersburg Institute has already built a state-of-the-art vaccine and serum-production plant in Nicaragua, with a $14 billion investment, which, when completed, will be able to provide vaccines not just to Central America and the Caribbean, but to all of Ibero-America. Its agreement to build a similar plant in Yachay’s science city is emblematic of Russia’s and China’s, role in collaborating with Ibero-American nations to develop their scientific and technological capabilities. Last October 11-12, at a meeting of the Fourth Russia-Ecuador Commercial and Intergovernmental Commission in Quito, participants agreed to prioritize expanding scientific and technological cooperation, and to carry out joint research in the pharmaceutical and information technology fields.

The agreement also includes provisions for training of personnel in the area of pharmaceuticals and vaccine research. Furthermore, the St. Petersburg Institute has said it will reinvest all profits into continued scientific and academic development and in other production lines. A delegation from the Institute is expected in Ecuador this coming week, to visit the construction site.