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Circle Jerk


We truly have a circle jerk with Putin, Trump, and Netanyahu pulling each other's chain in what threatens to become World War III.  Trump skipped out of a G7 meeting in Alberta, Canada, presumably to address the rapidly escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, while leaving Ukraine in the lurch.  A Russia-Ukraine ceasefire was the focus of the G7 meeting with Zelenskyy invited to Banff, but the artful dodger was too pre-occupied with other thoughts to pay the Ukrainian president much concern.  

Once again, Trump pitched readmitting Russia into the G7 despite having done nothing to warrant it.  This was a relic from the Clinton years when Bubba was on reasonably good terms with Boris Yeltsin and was trying to give Russia the economic help it needed to emerge from its Cold War recession.  Russia then as now had an economy ranked in the second tier of the G20 but had a huge nuclear arsenal to make up the difference.  In this way, the US hoped that Russia would honor a nuclear non-proliferation treaty signed in 1995.  Russia was kicked out of the G7+1 in 2014 when it invaded and subsequently annexed Crimea, which Trump now regards as a "mistake."

The mistake was admitting Russia into the G7 in the first place.  With a nominal GDP of barely more than 2 trillion dollars, it ranks behind much smaller G7 countries Canada and Italy, and is far behind France, the UK, Germany and Japan. The US economy is larger than all other G7 economies combined.  Meanwhile, China with the second largest world economy and India with the fourth largest economy are not members.  We should have long ago considered these two countries over Russia, then maybe we wouldn't be having to deal with BRICS, which is emerging as a powerful international trading bloc.

However, the prime concern right now is how to stave off another world war. Israel has greatly overstepped its bounds by bombing Iran and taking out senior military and nuclear science officials that is tantamount to war.  In turn, Iran has fired back but is limited as to how much harm it can directly cause Israel.  Meanwhile, Russia had been acting as a back channel in US-Iranian discussions of a new nuclear weapons deal that Netanyahu literally blew out of the water.  The Kremlin had offered at one point to "safeguard" Iran's enriched uranium, which is at the center of this controversy.  This is quid pro quo for Iran supplying Russia with military ordnance in its war against Ukraine, including Shahed drones, which Russia is now producing in Tartarstan.  I imagine many of the same drones found their way into the hands of Hamas and Hezbollah through third party agents.

Ironically, Netanyahu had long looked the other way, as he wanted access to Syria to take out Hezbollah cells operating within its borders.  He could only do this with the help of Russia.  As a result, he kept Israel out of the war in Ukraine, refusing to provide any form of military assistance and only nominal humanitarian assistance.  Yet, Russia has been working openly with Israel's sworn enemy for many years, helping to further develop Iran's nuclear program since 2012.  Iran supports both Hezbollah and Hamas.

While a very unsavory relationship, it was for the most part a regional conflict until Trump came to office in 2017.  It was long assumed that Trump was severely compromised given his numerous real estate deals with Russian oligarchs that stretch back to 1987.  We saw any number of awkward moments where Trump paid deference to Russia while being openly antagonistic to long-standing allies like Germany and France.  Fortunately, Trump had guardrails his first term as the RNC hand-picked all his key cabinet officials so that he was limited in what he could offer Russia.  However, those guardrails are now gone with many members of his cabinet being notably pro-Russian, not least of which billionaire real estate developer Steve Witkoff, who has been acting as Trump's special envoy in Moscow.  Witkoff has been negotiating all sorts of backdoor deals not so much in an effort to end the war in Ukraine as to re-establish economic ties with Russia. The only thing stopping Trump from openly doing so is an antagonist Republican Senate, which for the most part still views Russia as an enemy.

This puts the US in a very awkward position.  The Trump administration can't openly support Russia, so its talking heads use a lot of doublespeak in laying the blame for the war in Ukraine as much at Zelenskyy's feet as they do Putin's feet.  Moreso in fact, as Trump seemed notably upset that Ukraine masterminded an attack on Russia's prized tactical bomber fleet without his knowledge and babbled something about the consequences that would follow.  Those consequences turned out to be the US diverting missiles bound for Ukraine to the Middle East prior to Israel's attack on Iran.  As a result, Russia launched a massive drone strike on Ukrainian cities, knowing Ukraine had greatly limited defensive capabilities.  Yet, Putin says that is still not enough retribution for the damage Ukraine did to his precious bombers.  At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if Trump offers to replace Putin's lost bombers.

All this from a man who promised to end the war in Ukraine in one day and broker a peace agreement in Gaza that would turn it into the "Riviera of the Middle East." Since then Israel has continued to bomb Gaza unmercifully, killing far more citizens than Hamas insurrectionists, and turning Gaza into one of the worst humanitarian disasters in recent memory.  Now Bibi wants to do the same with Tehran, while Russia launches as many as 500 missiles and drones at Ukraine every day. This is what happens when foreign leaders let their tiny dicks do the talking.

It is only a matter of time before this blows up into a yuge conflagration that is beyond any of these impotent leaders' ability to manage.  Believe me, I have no sympathy for Iran but it is being put in the same position as Ukraine, although with no one to turn to as Putin isn't willing to defend his ally against Israel and the US, given his own backdoor deals with Netanyahu and Trump. However, Iran has shown before that it can wage war indefinitely and with small drones now being the weapon of choice in this new era of asymmetric warfare, you can do a tremendous amount of damage on a limited budget.  Everyone is learning from the war in Ukraine.  The rules of engagement have changed forever.



Comments

  1. https ://www.reddit.com/r/news_of_world/comments/1lehosg/al_jazeera_compares_and_contrasts_the_eus/

    Al Jazeera compares and contrasts the EU’s reactions to Russian attacks on nuclear facilities in Ukraine, versus Israel’s attacks on nuclear sites in Iran.⁠

    comments:

    ''The EU is known to me as the “League of Grande Hypocrisy”.

    ''I have zero respect for any Western nation.
    They talk about democracy and the rule of law. They have all behaved like shameless bandits and outlaws, choosing where and on whom they apply the law that suits them.''

    ''German chancellor has said that Israel is doing their dirty work for attacking Iran. I think it's very clear that no matter what Israel does, it will never be condemned.''



    All this hypocrisy and double standards is beyond belief.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Careful what you read on Reddit. FTR, the EU is divided over the Israeli attack on Iran. Some countries, including Germany, wanted to add that "Israel has the right to defend itself" to the joint statement, but this was rejected by other EU member countries.

    https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2025/06/19/eu-divided-over-israels-right-to-bomb-iran

    There isn't much the EU can do anyway as Israel is a rogue nation, having long ago dropped any attempt to adhere to UN Resolutions regarding the Palestinian territories, and sees the EU as nothing more than a compliant trading partner. It is doubtful the EU will sanction Israel as it has Russia, which is too bad. However, the EU did try to jumpstart the Iran nuclear deal but Biden showed no interest, so it was left for dead.

    https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/8/3/iran-nuclear-talks-to-restart-in-vienna-with-eu-mediation

    So, here we are.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I'm waiting for EU to say Iran has a right to defend itself.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Meanwhile,

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2025/jun/20/israel-iran-war-live-updates-geneva-talks-trump-khamenei-latest-news

    ReplyDelete
  5. tRump launches a bombing attack on Iran.

    See? I was correct all along: Putin is not and never was a threat to world peace. tRump was and remains so.

    Now watch as the UN Security Council wipes his butt and endorses his warmongering.

    ReplyDelete
  6. So, in your little mind, Russia attacking Ukraine and carrying on a three-year war doesn't represent a threat to world peace. Nor, constantly threatening to use tactical nuclear weapons if any other country intercedes. I think you are the one that needs a fresh roll of toilet paper.

    ReplyDelete
  7. PS I doubt the UN Security Council will endorse this war, anymore than it has Russia's aggression.

    ReplyDelete
  8. https://www.reddit.com/r/news_of_world/comments/1lhj50s/spanish_member_of_the_european_parliament_irene/

    https://almostmag.co/irene-montero-ursula-bomb-der-leyen-israel-gaza-eu-spain/

    Spanish member of the European Parliament Irene Montero called EU president Ursula von der Leyen, "Ursula bomb der Leyen”, for supporting Israel’s unprovoked attack on Iran.

    Speaking during a plenary session on Wednesday, June 18, Montero described the US and Israel as “the biggest threats to humanity” and called out several EU leaders for “feeding the monster”.

    Montero also slammed German chancellor Friedrich Merz, who thanked Israel and said they had done the “dirty work for all of us”.

    “Are those European values?” she asked.

    After Israel launched its large-scale, unprovoked attack on Iran’s nuclear and military facilities on June 13 — sparking an attack exchange from both countries that left dozens killed — several EU leaders, including France and von der Leyen, expressed their support for Israel’s “right to defend itself”.

    Montero also called out the double standard, pointing out that while Iran is accused of pursuing nuclear weapons, Israel already possesses them and the US remains the only country that has ever “dared to launch a bomb”.

    ✱ ✱ ✱ ✱ ✱ ✱

    Sad that people have suffered in your border conflict but is has and will remain confined to that region. By contrast, what tRump has done constitutes an immediate threat to the entire Middle East and will draw in other internationals because of the threat of losing access to oil, the Suez Canal, and Strait of Hormuz. That is a far greater threat to world peace and stability.

    The idea of Putin as threat to world peace as compared to tRump is like comparing a school yard bully to Hitler. Watch for FALSE FLAGS, the continued threat to world peace, and more casualties from terrorist bombings such as those from Netanyahu and tRump. And yes, store up on the bog roll cause it ain't gonna be pretty.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. So, dragging North Korea, Iran and China into his war with Ukraine doesn't constitute an international threat, nor do his repeated threats to bomb other European cities, or his threats to attack Japan and South Korea. Where do you even come from, Tripper? You seem to live on another planet entirely.

      https://www.ft.com/content/d345a6e7-2d72-4dcb-9c12-76d571ba75eb

      Even if this blows up into a full scale war with Iran, the country doesn't pose anywhere near the threat of Russia. Iran has very few allies these days. Even Russia has turned the other cheek, despite Iran supplying it with missiles and drones in its war with Ukraine.

      Delete
    2. PS - I noticed that Medvedev threatened to supply Iran with nuclear weapons,

      https://indianexpress.com/article/world/countries-to-supply-nuclear-warheads-iran-top-putin-aide-us-strikes-on-tehran-10082337/

      Delete
  9. You have quite an imagination and are out of touch with reality. Putin threatened to further arm North Korea if NATO attacked it. He has not threatened China in any way. That's a myth that has about as much credibility as Bush's mythic WMD. Ukraine has the option of surrendering just like the folks of Catalonia were forced to do. It's time for the EU to end its double standards in this regard.
    tRump's threats to annex Greenland, Canada, Panama, and his overt actions against Syria and Iran constitute far greater threats to world peace than does Putin's mere talk. As I wrote before, he's nothing more than a schoolyard bully. By contrast, tRump is the closest thing to Hitler.
    By the way, I don't see Putin rounding up innocents by the hundreds of thousands in his own country like Hitler did. As the world knows, tRump is doing it and threatens to do it to even more people. If people decide to rebel against his tyranny he will likely engage in more war in order to distract people from his tyranny at home. That is another reason why he is more of a threat to world peace.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Your reading comprehension never ceases to astound me. I said he threatened Japan and South Korea, yet you turn it into China and go off a silly tangent to suit your ego. You seem to forget Putin obliterated Chechnya (2000-2009) and installed a thug in power to act as his surrogate. He invaded Georgia in 2008, cleaving off two renegade territories. He then invaded Ukraine in 2014, seizing Crimea and setting off a civil war in the Donbas region. Throughout his reign of terror, he has launched cyberattacks (Estonia in 2007), hacked infrastructure and influenced elections throughout Europe, used cargo ships to trawl the Baltic Sea for undersea utility cables, and actively influenced the elections in the US in 2016, again in 2020 and 2024. Not to mention all the arms he has funneled to Latin America, $9 bn to Venezuela alone. He not only wants to reclaim the "lost empire" but wants to render the US impotent to challenge him. I have to say he is succeeding with the Trump administration.

      FTR, he has rounded up 100s of 1000s of Ukrainians and Tartars and other ethnic minorities, abducted children, and operated an ethnic cleansing in the seized oblasts of Ukraine that matches that of Hitler. In his country, he has gone after anyone who challenges his authority, from oligarchs to journalists to protesters. Russia currently has one of the worst records when it comes to deaths of journalists, with virtually no repercussions.

      You are playing a ridiculous game of false equivalences here by playing Putin off Trump. Putin is far worse, as he actually carries through with his threats. Trump, as we know, likes to use threats as a way of bargaining. Silly as some of these threats are. As far as death tolls, Trump is nowhere in the same league as Putin.

      Delete
    2. Oh, I forgot Aleppo,

      https://uploads.guim.co.uk/2022/03/17/Aleppo-desktop.jpg

      His use of the Wagner Group to prop up dictatorships throughout Africa, until disbanding the group in 2023, and is doing it directly now,

      https://martinplaut.com/2022/01/27/russias-mercenaries-prop-up-african-dictators/

      Nice guy.

      Delete
    3. An enemy of your enemy is not necessarily your friend.

      Delete
  10. In case you missed it, tRump opened up an Aligator Alcatraz in Florida for Latino prisoners. The tRump extermination campaign is going on while people like you ignore it and want him to stop Putin:
    https://www.instagram.com/p/DLm0b-Ux7dR/?utm_source=ig_embed
    https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/trump-ally-slammed-for-saying-alligators-in-everglades-detention-center-are-guaranteed-at-least-65-million-meals-lunatic/ar-AA1HR2sL?ocid=BingNewsSerp

    As I have said before, we simply have got to correct our own problems before intervening in yours. What tRump is doing nationwide is exactly what Hitler did to Jews in the 1930s. He continually rounds up and arrests innocent Latinos by the thousands, throws them in jail without trial, exiles thousands who now have no hope of returning, and the rest of the world looks the other way. This is precisely what Hitler did and it resulted in world war. Is this what you want?
    It's time to end Hitlerism. But we must begin at home, not overseas.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. modern Auschwitz created in Florida by tRump:

      https://www.reddit.com/r/CreationNtheUniverse/comments/1lquxee/the_bbb_will_fund_americas_militarization_call/

      Delete
    2. So when confronted with your own propaganda, you switch the subject to Alligator Alcatraz. Like I give a shit. The truth of the matter is that Trump is deporting no more people than Biden or any previous president. He's just making a big show out of it to satisfy his MAGA base.

      https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-set-broaden-arrests-deportation-routes-expand-immigration-crackdown-2025-02-21/

      Delete
    3. The press eats up stories like Alligator Alcatraz.

      Delete

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