FRIDAY, DECEMBER 20, 2019

Volume 6, Number 252

EIR Daily Alert Service

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

• Parallels in the U.K. of American Revolt
• Big Changes in Britain
• Zanni Tells LaRouchePAC, We Need Bank Separation Against the Green Bubble and ESM
• Is There Room in EU Law To Protect a National Banking System With Bank Separation?
• Italian Bankster Confesses Real Purpose of Green Bonds
• Bolivian Government Issues Arrest Warrant for Evo Morales, But Argentina President Won’t Honor It
• German Farmer in Flash Mob Protests Against Green Fascist Regulations
• Faced With Global Economic Crisis, Europe Must Cooperate With China, Argues British Expert
• Russia Helping To Nuclearize a Growing Africa
• China May Have Its Tokamak Fusion Reactor Operational by 2020

EDITORIAL

Parallels in the U.K. of American Revolt

Dec. 19 (EIRNS)—The insanity continues in the U.S. impeachment process, showing once again that it is nothing but an orchestrated coup attempt by the British intelligence authors of the “Russiagate” hoax and their assets in the Democratic Party. Nancy Pelosi, clearly aware that the ridiculous articles of impeachment are neither true, and are not even crimes if they were true, is now holding up the transfer of the case to the Senate for a trial until the new year, hoping some miracle will appear to justify their actually criminal intent. Attorney General William Barr tonight on Fox News made clear that there were serious criminal actions taken by the coup plotters, and that the investigation by special prosecutor John Durham intends to root them out, not only in the FBI and Department of Justice, but also in the CIA and other agencies as well. Durham has now called for many of the relevant records of former CIA Director John Brennan, who ran much of the Russiagate scam.

The intent—to prevent Trump’s effort to establish friendly relations between the U.S. and Russia and China, thus breaking up the British imperial division of the world into irreconcilable blocs—is the same in the “Ukraine” extension of the coup, since the British and the Obama intelligence operatives are frantic to cover up their direct role in the criminal coup against the elected Ukraine government, in league with overt Nazi gangs, with the intention of starting war with Russia. With the Ukrainian people overwhelmingly voting out the neo-Nazi regime, in favor of President Volodymyr Zelensky’s intent to restore relations with Russia, Trump is now cooperating with Zelensky to that end. The fake impeachment charge of “abuse of power” for Trump’s effort to expose this massive crime, is laughable, but nonetheless extremely dangerous.

The situation in the U.K. has many similarities—although one must be cautious here, since it is the British Empire that is at stake. Boris Johnson and his top adviser Dominic Cummings have appealed to the working class in the U.K., traditionally aligned with the Labour Party, to restore Britain’s historic industrial capacities and its strength in scientific research and infrastructure, with a result like that of Trump’s sweep of traditionally Democratic Party states in the 2016 election. Those layers in both the Labour and Tory parties that fought against the Brexit vote of 2016, which was strongly supported by Johnson, were largely swept out of office in the national election which gave Johnson his historic majority.

In both the U.K. and the U.S., the rapidly onrushing financial collapse is being ignored. It is entirely possible that as the bubble bursts, President Trump will turn to the LaRouche solutions, the American System policies of Alexander Hamilton, rather than the Wall Street crowd around him. It is less likely that Johnson would do the same, but if the U.S. comes together with Russia and China, as Trump is trying to do, that that combination, with India and others that would join, can impose a new paradigm for the world, dragging even the British along. This has been the intention of the LaRouche movement over several decades—it is now squarely on the table, requiring the full mobilization of the patriots of this nation, and the citizens of the world.

U.S. POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC

Big Changes in Britain

Dec. 19 (EIRNS)—While it’s too early to draw conclusions—and this is Britain, after all—extraordinary changes are going on there.  One which bears some comparison to Russiagate and impeachment in the U.S., is that parliamentary opponents of Brexit from every political party, conducted every sort of sneaky parliamentary maneuver to stop Brexit during the entirety of Johnson’s seven-month government.  The hatred and bile the British establishment poured out against Johnson, his top advisor Dominic Cummings and Brexit, was reminiscent of nothing more than “Trump Derangement Syndrome” in the U.S.

Their maneuvers succeeded—they prevented Brexit—but they were only digging their own graves, as Cummings said repeatedly. Now the “Tory rebels” against Johnson and Brexit have one and all been dumped by the British voters. None of their leaders is in government any longer.

Johnson’s Tory party swept to an electoral victory the like of which has not been seen for 30 years, by capturing the majority of the former base of the Labour Party.  A clear majority of skilled workers in Britain voted Tory for the first time in memory.

COLLAPSING WESTERN FINANCIAL SYSTEM

Zanni Tells LaRouchePAC, We Need Bank Separation against the Green Bubble and ESM

Dec. 19 (EIRNS)—In a 40-minute video interview to be posted on LaRouchePAC, Marco Zanni, the leader of the Identity and Democracy faction of the European Parliament and Italy’s Foreign Affairs spokesman for the Lega party, exposed the fraud of the EU’s European Stability Mechanism (ESM) bank bailout scheme and of the Green New Deal, and argued for bank separation (Glass-Steagall) instead.

Zanni warned that faced by stress throughout the financial system, “the EU and European Central Bank are refusing to assess properly or to consider actions to tackle the huge risks that are evident to everyone now.” The ESM “is a complicated, useless mechanism that is typical of EU decision-making processes. We have an instrument which is already in place and could guarantee financial stability to the financial system: It is the ECB. We don’t need the ESM as a safety net.”

Another problem is that none of the regulations put in place after the 2008 crisis “address the problem. They are just trying to create buffers, capital buffers that are not enough to guarantee stability to the financial system. We are acting to set up mechanisms to absorb a financial crisis, but history shows that it is impossible to calculate beforehand the consequences of a financial crisis. Whatever capital buffers we impose on banks, that won’t be enough to face the next financial crisis.”

The right way is to act is to prevent the crisis. “We have worked since 2014, I have worked in the European Parliament and in the European institutions to protect the healthy part of our banks and separate what we don’t need, what is speculative debt that is just feeding a big financial bubble in our system. History shows that in the end, this bubble will burst, and taxpayers will have to pay for the mistakes and speculations of bankers.”

The case of the Banca Popolare di Bari (BPB) crisis shows mistakes in supervision, but also “is an example of how managers bankrupt a financial institution because they chase after high returns, high-risk investments, in order to pay themselves bonuses. It shows that authorities must intervene with proper separation.”

Is Green finance a new bubble? “Green is the color of money…. There is something behind it. This green schizophrenia is something we should assess better. It is not based on concrete data, it is not based on a pragmatic approach, and it is dangerous propaganda. Last week the EU Commission President [Ursula von der Leyen] presented her Green New Deal which is one of the pillars of her program for the next five years, and I was not surprised to see that this is just speculative finance hiding behind a sort of green wall.

“What will happen on this? Banks will speculate on this new instrument, will make profits, will feed the financial bubble and someone in the end will have to pay the bill for this speculation….

“What is in the end for the EU in this Green New Deal and the so-called Just Transition Fund that is supposed to be an €1 trillion fund to help banks to make profits, and government and the private sector to invest in so-called green projects? That, for me, is something similar to the ESM. When Germany was in trouble with banks greatly exposed to Greek debt, they decided to set up this bailout fund, which collected taxpayers’ money from all member states and bailed out German banks. And that will happen with this Just Transition Fund as well. Germany today needs to reconvert its industrial system. So, this JTF will again collect money from taxpayers around Europe to pay for Germany’s industrial conversion. That is what will happen, and that is something we want to block.

“We have the duty to bring the debate about climate change back to reality, because this is dangerous propaganda, dangerous schizophrenia that will hurt not just Europe but the entire world, as well as the progress of our continent and our country at a moment when we are experiencing a lack of growth.”

Is There Room in EU Law To Protect a National Banking System with Bank Separation?

Dec. 19 (EIRNS)—Banking regulation is not the exclusive jurisdiction of the European Union, MEP Marco Zanni explained in his LaRouchePAC interview, but de facto the EU has the power to legislate banking regulation. “There is the possibility for member states to legislate and to draft banking and financial regulations. The Lega had banking separation in its 2018 program. Unfortunately, due to the short life of the last government, we were not able to propose this reform. However, the reform should not be limited to the national sectors; it should be developed at European level,” Zanni said. It is possible to draft legislation at the national level but it won’t be sufficient. “We need this bill to be approved and proposed at the EU level, for all EU countries.

“I think that at some point, in the next five years [the term of the European Parliament] the coming financial crisis will force European legislators to consider banking separation as a strong action to stabilize our financial system and make it safer.”

Italian Bankster Confesses Real Purpose of Green Bonds

Dec. 19 (EIRNS)—In a conversation three days before the Banca Popolare di Bari was put in receivership by the Bank of Italy, BPB CEO Vincenzo de Bustis (formerly with Deutsche Bank Italy) said he was sure his political friends would protect the bank and explained that he had launched a Green Bond to steal money from customers. “Why did I raise so much trouble [to launch] this Green Bond? Forget the Green! I don’t give a shit about Green! Nothing! Sure it is an important sector, but I am concerned with the technique, it is capital light. That is: financing companies without endangering [our] capital and making profits.”

THE NEW GLOBAL ECONOMIC ORDER

Bolivian Government Issues Arrest Warrant for Evo Morales, but Argentina President Won’t Honor It

Dec. 19 (EIRNS)—Yesterday morning, Bolivia’s Interior Minister Arturo Murillo announced his government had issued an arrest warrant for deposed President Evo Morales, charging him with sedition, terrorism and financing terrorism. They appear intent on giving Morales the Qaddafi treatment.

The arrest warrant, signed by the La Paz prosecutor’s office, orders law enforcement to apprehend Morales, who has been granted refugee status in Argentina, and bring him to La Paz. Murillo claims to have taped phone conversations between Morales and a collaborator, allegedly proving Morales was conspiring to foment violence. These are fake, Morales charged. The Interior Minister has also issued a formal request for Morales to be extradited and has notified Interpol to carry out the arrest.

Last night, Argentine President Alberto Fernández and his Foreign Minister Felipe Solá reviewed the case, and determined they will not allow Morales to be arrested in Argentina and ordered his security increased. While the Foreign Ministry’s legal office is reviewing the arrest warrant, and may possibly issue a formal reply, the Foreign Ministry told the daily Infobae that “Argentina is not obligated to give a legal response to something it considers out of line as it relates to someone who is a political refugee.” Morales will continue to have “diplomatic immunity and protection,” the Ministry said.

Another government official told La Razón that Morales will be protected, “because the whole arrest warrant is a farce.”

German Farmers in Flash Mob Protests against Green Fascist Regulations

Dec. 19 (EIRNS)—Many of the protest actions in the Netherlands yesterday were announced internally in the farmers’ organizations but concrete timetables were kept secret from the public beforehand, to have a maximum effect with surprise tractorcades and road/highway blockades during the morning rush hour. The actions were carried out in a quasi-flash mob modus—more of which are planned as farm organization officials hinted, with no new dates announced yet. Many actions lasted even into the night. Footage and photos of hundreds of tractors occupying a section of the central A1 highway in the Netherlands are impressive.

Farmers in the Wiesbaden region in Germany also used the flash mob modus for a spontaneous protest in the late afternoon on the main artery of Berliner Strasse. Similar surprise actions were staged elsewhere in Germany as well, for instance, there were road blockades in the afternoon rush hour in Neubrandenburg, and in the Uckermark region. “No Farmers, No Food, No Future!” and “We Produce What You Eat!” were prominent slogans on pickets posted on the front of the tractors.

They all protested against German government plans to pass the “climate protection package” before the end of the year, whichwill particularly target agriculture for substantial so-called “emissions,” whose reductions would be enforced by punitive taxes on nitrogen oxide. Protests also oppose new EU regulations against insecticides and pesticides. Farmers interviewed on television said the measures are unworkable, and rather than improving the climate they will destroy farming. “These are not policies, this is sheer ideology,” one farmer told Brandenburg television last night.

Faced with Global Economic Crisis, Europe Must Cooperate with China, Argues British Expert

Dec. 19 (EIRNS) —Stephen Perry, chairman of Britain’s 48 Group Club, is among experts whom Xinhua cites as coming out in favor of intensified economic cooperation between Europe and China as “global economy continues its trend to slow down,” as Xinhua delicately puts the immediate threat of collapse. According to Perry, the world economy is “ ‘on a knife-edge and China has been 30% of world growth. Growth is vital to the West. China’s growth is vital to the West.’ It is time to build a new world based on cooperation and sharing, a message sent by the new developing world, he said.”

Xinhua also interviewed former French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin, a major world voice for cooperation with China, who said that China contributes to the renewal of multilateralism in a world troubled by a strong resurgence of unilateralism. “Nations today are so interdependent,” therefore making cooperation is “a daily obligation” between consumers and suppliers, partners and competitors, Raffarin said. He pointed out that Beijing’s diplomacy is “inspired by a conviction deeply rooted in the Chinese culture”—there is more to gain from cooperation than confrontation. “There is a need to solidify European-Chinese friendship, he said. ‘To work toward this friendship is to work for peace,’ ” Xinhua concluded its “Yearender.”

SCIENCE AND INFRASTRUCTURE

Russia Helping To Nuclearize a Growing Africa

Dec. 19 (EIRNS) —Russia’s Rosatom nuclear energy firm is already building a $29 billion nuclear plant complex for Egypt, and the company is also helping Nigeria, Uganda, the Republic of Congo, and Rwanda establish nuclear facilities. The El Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant in Egypt will have four VVER-1200 reactors, or water-water energetic reactors, which are Russian-designed Generation III+ reactors. Russia is financing 85% of the project with a loan of about $25 billion to Egypt, and Egypt is paying the remaining 15% over a period of 13 years, reported Darrell Proctor in Power on Dec. 2.

Africa’s only current operating nuclear power plant is the 1.8 GW Koeberg Nuclear Power Station, north of Cape Town, which is owned and operated by South Africa’s power utility Eskom. The plant recently had its operational period extended for another 20 years from 2024 when it was originally supposed to be decommissioned.

African nations are trying to increase their power generation capacity on a continent that has long struggled to sustain reliable power. The International Energy Agency recently reported that 57% of Africa’s population still does not have easy access to electricity, and those with access to power deal with frequent power outages. However, South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa insists—contrary to his predecessor Jacob Zuma—that the country cannot “afford” nuclear power, when in fact, no country with the growth prospects typified by Africa’s overall outlook, can afford not to install nuclear full force.

China May Have Its Tokamak Fusion Reactor Operational by 2020

Dec. 19 (EIRNS)—China may power up a nuclear fusion reactor soon. Chinese and international engineering media report in the past days that construction of a fusion research facility based in Chengdu, Sichuan province in southwestern China is going well. It should be operational sometime in 2020, Xinhua reported already in late November.

The Chengdu facility houses an HL-2M tokamak machine, using an approach to fusion based on magnetic confinement, in which magnetic fields contain hot fuel in the form of plasma. According to the report, the installation uses hydrogen and deuterium as fuel. It was built by the Southwestern Institute of Physics, an affiliate of the China National Nuclear Corp. The HL-2M is an upgrade of China’s previous model, the HL-2A, according to CNNC.

China is also among seven member states funding the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), a nuclear fusion research and engineering project that is building a tokamak nuclear fusion reactor in France, the world’s largest magnetic confinement physics experiment.

Note to Subscribers: EIR Daily Alert will not be published on Dec. 26 and Jan. 2, to allow staff to take Christmas and New Year’s Day off.

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