Peter Lavelle ■ Western media, following the "bullhorns of propaganda" resident at the White House and State Department, assumes Putin is bent on re-building the Russian Empire and/or Soviet Union. This is assumed to be true because the “bullhorns of propaganda” say it’s true. I submit a completely different and actually very simple interpretation of Putin’s foreign policy. It has nothing to do with an empire and everything to do with respect of ethnic Russians and democratic rights. Putin has no interest in rebuilding the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union was an incredible net economic loss for Russia and Russians. In this century, Russia correctly sees an empire as too costly, politically risky, and importantly at odds with international law. Since the advent of the Putin presidency, the Kremlin has demonstrated it will make smart trade deals with its immediate neighbors, but outright subsidies are to be avoided. (Russia’s overly generous approach toward Ukraine since 1991 is a partial exception – trade relations with Kiev have always been complicated by Russia’s important trade relationship with Europe). Putin’s ‘near abroad’ foreign policy is about people and principles.

Paul Craig Roberts ■ Russia’s Rise To Global Power || Russia can rise to power with the East. There is no reason for Russia to beg the West for acceptance. The basis for US foreign policy are the Brzezinski and Wolfowitz doctrines, which state that Washington must prevent the rise of Russia. Washington has no good will toward Russia and will hamper Russia at every opportunity. As long as Washington controls Europe, Russia has no prospects of being a part of the West, unless Russia becomes Washington’s puppet state, like Germany, Britain, and France.

PCR Interviewed by King World News — Message from the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum

The Western narrative has closely mirrored talking points generated from within the halls of power. Where does the Western media's inability and unwillingness to report the Ukrainian story come from? Is Western media merely the instrument of the rich and powerful? And what is journalism's main purpose? CrossTalking with Manuel Ochsenreiter and Dmitry Babich.

For some reason, the power to disappear people without a trial is really, really important to America's ruling class. ● One thing we know for sure, the indefinite detention provisions which shipped in the 2012, 2013, and now the 2014 versions of the NDAA didn't slip in by accident. It was bad enough that Congress pushed the law through in the face of widespread uproar, and that Obama signed it each time when he could have easily vetoed it with a single stroke of his pen, but yesterday when they voted down an amendment proposed by Adam Smith (D-Washington), which would have done nothing but eliminate indefinite detention in the U.S. and its territories, that demonstrates that America's ruling class really, really wants this power. Now of course, those who support the elimination of habeas corpus will tell you that this law is only for "terrorists", but that's precisely where the issue lies. Who determines if someone is a terrorist? Under the NDAA, faceless bureaucrats can make someone disappear based on a mere accusation.

New report exposes US government's treatment of social movements as 'criminal or terrorist enterprises'. ● U.S. government Fusion Centers, which operate as ill-defined "counter-terrorism" intelligence gathering and sharing centers, conducted spy operations against Occupy protesters involving police, the Pentagon, the FBI, military employees, and business people. So finds a report released Friday by the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund based on 4,000 public documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request. The release was accompanied by an in-depth article by the New York Times.

Over 400 cities worldwide will see millions marching against the US chemical and agricultural company Monsanto in an effort to boycott the use of Genetically Modified Organizms in food production. Marches are planned in 52 countries in addition to some 47 US states that are jointing in the protest.

VoR: Thousands march against GMO around the world

Sanctions against certain sectors of the Russian economy reportedly being discussed by EU countries would harm European companies operating in Russia and would violate WTO regulations, says Russian presidential aide, Andrei Belousov. ● "You know, it's hard for me to decide for the EU but I do hope that these two factors will be taken into consideration in making a final decision," Belousov told journalists in commenting on the possibility of such sanctions on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) on Saturday.

Harvard Law School scholar David Barron is an Obama administration nominee for a federal appeals court. He is also the author of government memos that make legal justifications for killing U.S. citizens overseas with drone strikes, which is why his selection to the U.S. First Circuit Court of Appeals has been delayed. The White House has agreed to allow lawmakers to review at least one of the drone memos after U.S. senators and the the American Civil Liberties Union expressed concerns, technology website Ars Technica reported Wednesday.

Antiwar.com: Appeals Court Judge - Vote Split Along Party Lines

'Country X': WikiLeaks reveals NSA recording 'nearly all' phone calls in Afghanistan ● The NSA records all domestic and international phone calls in Afghanistan, similar to what it does in the Bahamas, WikiLeaks' Julian Assange said. Reports in the Washington Post and The Intercept had previously reported that domestic and international phone calls from two or more target states had been recorded and stored in mass as of 2013. Both publications censored the name of one victim country at the request of the US government, which the Intercept referred to as country "X". Assange says he cannot disclose how Wikileaks confirmed the identity of the victim state for the sake of source protection, though the claim can be "independently verified" via means of "forensic scrutiny of imperfectly applied censorship on related documents released to date and correlations with other NSA programs."

Wikileaks: WikiLeaks statement on the mass recording of Afghan telephone calls by the NSA || We know from previous reporting that the National Security Agency’s mass interception system is a key component in the United States’ drone targeting program. The US drone targeting program has killed thousands of people and hundreds of women and children in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia in violation of international law. The censorship of a victim state’s identity directly assists the killing of innocent people. Although, for reasons of source protection we cannot disclose how, WikiLeaks has confirmed that the identity of victim state is Afghanistan. This can also be independently verified through forensic scrutiny of imperfectly applied censorship on related documents released to date and correlations with other NSA programs (see http://freesnowden.is). We do not believe it is the place of media to "aid and abet" a state in escaping detection and prosecution for a serious crime against a population. Consequently WikiLeaks cannot be complicit in the censorship of victim state X. The country in question is Afghanistan.

President Vladimir Putin announced Friday that Russia will recognize the outcome of Ukraine's presidential vote this weekend but voiced hope that Ukraine would halt its military operation against separatists in the east. In Kiev, Ukraine's leader urged all voters to take part in the crucial ballot to "cement the foundation of our nation" but pro-Russia insurgents still battled government forces in eastern Ukraine. Speaking at an investment forum in St. Petersburg, Putin said Russia will "respect the choice of the Ukrainian people" and will work with its new leadership. He said Russia wants peace and order to be restored in Russia's neighbor. Yet earlier, Putin had blamed the West for both encouraging a "coup" in Ukraine when the nation's pro-Russian president was chased from power and for plunging the country into what he described as "chaos and a full-scale civil war."

Bill Van Auken: New York Times’ vision of Ukrainian “democracy”

The Saker ■ Something really weird has just happened in the Ukraine. Everybody agrees that an attack took place on a checkpoint of the Ukrainian national guard near the city of Volnovakha (see map). 35 soldiers were wounded, 15 died (other figures quote 8 confirmed dead and an unknown number of evacuated bodies of attackers who got killed; one source says "13-20 fatalities"). The surviving soldiers say that out of 53 men, only 7 survived. So far all the sources point to the same sequence of events. Here is what I pieced together:

A Ukrainian national guard unit (according to one source the 51st motorized brigade which had been hastily made up with middle-aged reservists) brought in from the city of Vinnitsa. For three days were were told to man a checkpoint, but today they were given the order to attack civilians in a nearby village. The unit refused and the commander announced that he would withdraw because "there were no terrorists here, only civilians". At around 5AM a black sedan, two jeeps and several vehicles (vans and armored) of the company Privat Bank (belongs to the Jewish oligarch Kolomoiski) carrying members of the "Donbass" and "Azov" death-squads drove to the checkpoint and opened fire with everything they had. The soldiers fired back as best they could. The attack lasted 15min after which the attackers put on some Saint George ribbons and beat up the surviving and wounded soldiers while telling them that they were from the Donbass Resistance forces. Not a single solider believed them. About one hour later two or three more helicopters were seen shooting at the destroyed vehicles of the attackers in an apparent attempt to conceal their origin (Privat Bank). Still, witnesses have categorically identified the vans used by Privat Bank. There is also video footage confirming this.

Moon of Alabama ■ Ukraine: Army Soldiers Killed In Friendly Fire Incident? || Something weird happened in east Ukraine today. Allegedly some insurgents from the "Gorlovka" group attacked a Ukrainian military checkpoint near the town Volnovakha in Donetsk oblast. Some 13 soldiers were killed, over 30 wounded and several armored personal carriers were destroyed (vid). There are no reports yet of wounded or killed insurgents. It does not sound plausible to me that a group of rag tag insurgents only recently formed and without much fighting experience attacks a platoon plus size military unit and destroys it completely.

RT.com: Donetsk bloodbath: Insider video shows Ukraine helicopters firing at own checkpoint
RT.com: 16 Ukraine soldiers killed in Donetsk Region checkpoint attack
Antiwar.com: 16 Ukraine Soldiers Killed in Checkpoint Attack

Andrew Korybko ■ Ukraine and Syria are both going to the polls in less than two weeks, but the election that is legitimate (Syria) is painted as a fraud by the West, and the actual fraudulent election (Ukraine) is promoted as legitimate. Comparing both of these cases back-to-back most strongly illustrates the hypocrisy behind the West’s position. By keeping in mind that it is the West that supports the Ukrainian junta and Russia and China (the leaders of ‘the Rest’) that support the legitimate Syrian government, the dichotomy over democratic practice becomes more acute, and not surprisingly, this illustrates the growing moral and normative authority that the Rest has over the West. There are three main categorical comparisons, and the juxtaposition of the Ukrainian and Syrian scenarios will demonstrate the lack of democracy in the former and the vibrance of it in the latter.

Tony Cartalucci ■ Ukraine Descends Into Chaos Ahead of Sham Elections || The regime in Ukraine is rushing forward with elections, supposedly to take place on May 25, even as much of the country descends into chaos. With Crimea now part of Russia, and two more provinces declared autonomous after recent referendums – with more provinces to follow – Kiev has responded with a campaign that resembles more of a foreign invasion and occupation than a national security operation. With its regular army in shambles, Kiev has turned to a patchwork of militias, ad hoc mercenaries, armed gangs, and has even tasked loyal corporate-financial oligarchs with raising and deploying private armies of their own. The results is predicable mayhem and can be seen playing out most acutely in the breakaway province of Donetsk in Ukraine’s east. Recently militants, militias, and even helicopter gunships clashed near the town of Volnovakha leaving up to 16 dead. Conflicting reports are emerging from the clash, but statements from both sides and video taken of helicopter gunships strafing what remained of an ambushed convoy of troops from Kiev depicts the regime engaged in a desperate and losing battle.

Jordan Shilton ■ The emergence of the modern-day financial aristocracy at the top of society has been directly connected to the impoverishment of ever broader layers of working people. Over the past 10 years, the wealth of the richest 1,000 people in Britain has doubled. During the same period, state finances were raided to provide a multi-billion bailout to these very same layers, whose ill-gotten gains were achieved through acts of financial speculation and outright criminality. For the working class, the bank bailout ushered in an era of unprecedented attacks on its living standards and social services on which millions depend. While the rich wallow in wealth, the use of food banks has reached unheard of levels, wages have been slashed and public services eliminated or privatised.

Army Chief General Prayuth Chan-ocha formally seized power yesterday afternoon and announced himself as prime minister, two days after imposing martial law and taking control of Thailand. The army has now dissolved the elected Pheu Thai government, suspended the constitution, imposed a curfew from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m., taken over all radio and TV stations and banned gatherings of more than five people. The army ordered the caretaker prime minister Niwattumrong Boonsongpaisan and his cabinet to report to its newly-established National Peace and Order Maintaining Council. It has also summoned 23 other Pheu Thai members, including former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, and members of her family.

SCG News: Thailand's Martial Law Now Officially a Coup as Military Seizes Power
RT.com: Military coup in Thailand: Constitution suspended, all TV & radio broadcasts halted

The Fact that a Senator Even Needs to SAY This Shows How Far We’ve Fallen - Senator Ron Wyden said yesterday: Every American has the RIGHT to know when their government believes it is allowed to KILL them!

Israel has always been snooping on the US government and Capitol Hill is overrun with Israeli spies, an American columnist says. ● “The current news that CIA releasing a report that Israel is the third most aggressive espionage threat against the US is really kind of an old story,” Jim Dean told Press TV on Sunday. Newsweek reported on Friday the Central Intelligence Agency has ranked Israel as the third most aggressive “intelligence service” working against the US, a leaked document shows. The National Security Agency document, obtained by American whistleblower Edward Snowden, was revealed by journalist Glenn Greenwald in line with the publication of his book, No Place to Hide: Edward Snowden, the NSA and the US Surveillance State. The spying “continues on and it’s not only military intelligence, but actually political intelligence, which is very important,” the Veterans Today columnist said. “Capitol Hill is overrun with Israeli spies. They have them on staff. They have congressmen working very closely with Israeli intelligence, helping them get anything they want. They literally sometimes can put orders in for things that the Pentagon will not share with them. That’s a horrible national scandal.”

Senate: Which Groups Are We At War With? Admin: That’s Classified. The Senate’s Committee on Foreign Relations held a hearing today on renewing the Authorization for the Use of Force (AUMF) in Iraq and Afghanistan. Senators repeatedly asked representatives from the Department of Defense which groups we are at war with. And the DOD refused to answer.

Joseph Kishore: Obama administration asserts unlimited war powers without Congressional authorization

Ukip will win the European elections and the Liberal Democrats will be left back in fifth place, pollsters have predicted. ● The prediction, based on a poll of 6,124 adults over the last two days by YouGov for The Sun, is that Nigel Farage's Ukip will gain most votes with 27%, despite him being involved in a number of racist and homophobic controversies in the lead up to election day. Labour is projected to come second with 26%, the Tories third with 22% of the vote, followed by the Greens on 10% and the Lib Dems with 9%. The poll suggests that Ukip and Labour will both have 22 MEPs, an increase of nine each on the last elections in 2009. The Conservatives are expected to get 16 of the 70 European Parliament seats being voted on in England, Scotland and Wales, 10 fewer than before, while the Greens will get four - an increase of two.

Stefan Molyneux ■ During Putin's two day visit in Shanghai, Russia and China took another small step to undermine U.S. monetary hegemony when Russia’s second biggest financial institution, VTB, signed a deal with the Bank of China to bypass the dollar and pay each other in domestic currencies. Many experts are referring to the move as symbolic. The banking deal is very small in the scheme of things, however it is a signal of intent. Both China and Russia are looking to a future where the U.S. dollar is no longer the world reserve currency, and they aren't content to wait for that future to arrive. They are working to help it along. While this particular banking deal may not be incredibly significant in and of itself, there is another deal that is in the works that could have a much wider impact. According to Reuters, the BRICS block (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) aim to finish preparations for a new international development bank by this July. The bank, which has been in the works for several years now, aims to provide an alternative to the IMF (The United States is currently the dominant shareholder of the IMF).

MoA: Russia's "Isolation" (links)

German Foreign Minister Steinmeier had a complete fit of rage when he was interrupted during a speech by anti-Fascist demonstrators who were accusing the German regime of supporting Fascists in the Ukraine. See for yourself for his reaction.

The good news is that this incident clearly shows that more and more people understand the nature of the conflict in the Ukraine and that more and more people are willing to stand up and protest what is being done in their name.

Ukraine mini-SITREP May 22th, 00:14 UTC/Zulu: "Ukie attack appears imminent" (UPDATED!)

Ukraine mini-SITREP May 21th, 20:42 UTC/Zulu

Michael Burke ■ Who will benefit from the IMF's $17bn bailout of Ukraine? Not its people || In return for the latest $17bn bailout of Ukraine the IMF insists on dramatic measures in five main areas of the economy: a sharp currency devaluation, which will increase the cost of all imported goods, a government-funded bailout for domestic banks, government spending cuts, measures to regulate money laundering and a sharp increase in energy prices. The latter are particularly ironic, since the widespread story in the west is that it is the Russian oil giant Gazprom that is threatening price hikes. The IMF calls for energy prices to be increased by between 240% and 425% over the next four years. No wonder Ukrainian prime minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk says he will be "the most unpopular prime minister in the history of my country". [...] The effect of the IMF intervention, then, acting as it does in the interest of western creditors rather than the Ukrainian people, will be only to further impoverish the population of Ukraine.

The White House will reportedly comply with a court order to reveal a secret memo describing its legal justification mumbo jumbo for using drones to kill US citizens suspected of terrorism overseas. The Justice Department had been weighing whether to appeal a court order to disclose the memo but informed the White House on Tuesday that it would not, the official said. The decision came on the eve of a Senate vote on President Obama’s nomination of David J. Barron, one of the memo’s authors, to a federal appeals court judgeship. The documents will be released later, pending court approval.

HuffPo: Obama Administration To Reveal Justification For Drone Strikes On U.S. Citizens

Huffington Post has posted an article crashing the notion of the "American Dream." Journalists have interviewed hundreds of people who have earned master's degree, went to college, who work various jobs and still are below the poverty line. How did that happen that the US has turned from the country where everyone came to achieve a dream into a country where despite all the efforts, people can still barely feed their families and cannot live normally struggling financially, not being able to afford simple things?

Security footage apparently showing two unarmed Palestinian teenagers being shot dead by Israeli soldiers has emerged. The film, shot from nearby office buildings, was taken during a lull in a stone-throwing clash on 15 May in the West Bank city of Beitunia. Nadeem Siam Nawara, 17, sustained a fatal gunshot wound to the chest, while Mohammad Mahmoud Odeh, 16, was shot in the back, the NGO Defence for Children International Palestine (DCIP) reports. “The images captured on video show unlawful killings where neither child presented a direct and immediate threat to life at the time of their shooting,” Rifat Kassis, executive director of DCIP told the Electronic Intifada. “These acts by Israeli soldiers may amount to war crimes, and the Israeli authorities must conduct serious, impartial, and thorough investigations to hold the perpetrators accountable for their crimes.” The boys were participating in a demonstration near Ofer military prison to mark Nabka Day and express solidarity with hunger striking prisoners. The protest reportedly began peacefully but turned violent when Israeli forces clashed with the Palestinian youths.

Gilad Atzmon ■ Is it Nakba 2.0 or Nakba 1.9? || The Jewish State is not an apartheid apparatus! it is actually far worse. Israel doesn’t attempt to exploit the Palestinians, it wants them gone. Israel puts into action Nazi-like (Lebensraum) ethnic cleaning tactics because Jewish nationalism is an expansionist ideology driven by judeo-centric racist supremacy. The truth is simple and devastating. However, the Diaspora Jewish Left attempt to conceal it all is actually embarrassing, yet, symptomatic.

The US National Security Agency has never said what it was seeking when it illegally invaded the computers of Petrobras, Brazil’s huge national oil company, but Brazilians assumed: the company’s troves of data on Brazil’s offshore oil reserves, or perhaps its plans for allocating licenses for exploration to foreign companies, the New York Times reports. It has become known that the agency also got its hands on the computer systems of China Telecom, one of the largest providers of mobile phone and Internet services in Chinese cities. But documents released by Edward Snowden leave little doubt that the main goal was to learn about Chinese military units, whose members cannot resist texting on commercial networks. The agency’s interest in Huawei, the giant Chinese maker of Internet switching equipment, and Pacnet, the Hong Kong-based operator of undersea fiber optic cables, is more obvious: once inside those companies’ proprietary technology, the NSA would have access to millions of daily conversations and emails that never touch American shores.

New York Times: Fine Line Seen in U.S. Spying on Companies
RT.com: Chinese media vents spleen over US cybercrime charges
Eric London: NSA records and stores content of all phone calls in "two" countries
Patrick Martin: US pushes cyber-war confrontation with China