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Russia A leaked draft of President Donald Trump's nuclear posture review seems to confirm that Russia has been building an underwater nuclear doomsday machine. Reports of the torpedo sent a chill down the spines of experts, who say it could not only destroy a city but poison the area with radiation for years to come. Russia may have intentionally let on that it was working on the doomsday device to sow fear in the US and deter attacks. President Donald Trump's nuclear posture review,  leaked to HuffPost this month , seems to show the US believes Russia is building a dangerous new undersea nuclear weapon that critics say could cause widespread death and damage. "Russia is developing and deploying new nuclear warheads and launchers," the leaked review says, adding that these systems include "a new intercontinental, nuclear-armed, undersea autonomous torpedo." Printouts of plans for such a nuclear torpedo had been spotted in state TV footage of a meeting ...

Washington admits it used one of the worst weapons imaginable in Syria, despite earlier promises that it wouldn't You don't want to see what depleted uranium does to human beings. Depleted Uranium is left over from the enrichment of uranium 235. It is exceptionally hard, and has been employed by militaries both to penetrate armored targets and to reinforce their potential targets like tanks against enemy fire. Though less radioactive than the original uranium, DU is toxic and is considered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to be a “radiation health hazard when inside the body.” The weapon saw widespread use in the First Gulf War, and its affects on the health of U.S. soldiers was later dubbed "Golf War Syndrome". (At least it was semi-recognized; the severe birth defects and other health issues this weapon has caused among the Iraqi population have simply been ignored or denied). This disgusting weapon was used again by the Americans  during their "l...

US President Donald Trump is expected to retreat from his campaign promise to rip up a nuclear deal signed by Iran and the P5+1 group of countries, including the US, the UK, France, Russia, and China plus Germany in 2015, says an analyst. “Despite President Trump’s campaign promises in which he called the Iran nuclear deal as the ‘worse deal’, we don’t think the White House will be killing the nuclear deal,” Roozbeh Aliabadi, managing partner of the Global Growth Advisors from New York, told Press TV on Tuesday. European states, Russia and China are behind the nuclear accord called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the analyst said adding, “it is highly unlikely that we will see killing of the deal.” “It is reasonable for all of us to assume that the nuclear deal will stay in place,” the analyst noted. He said the fact that Trump in his first three weeks in office has not yet discussed the JCPOA with the ...

The SSV-175 Viktor Leonov is seen docked at a Havana port. (file photo) American officials say a Russian intelligence-gathering ship has been spotted patrolling off the East Coast of the United States, the first such operation since President Donald Trump took office, according to a report. The vessel was 70 miles off the coast of Delaware on Tuesday, heading north at 10 knots, an official told Fox News on condition of anonymity. The US territorial sea extends 12 nautical miles from the baseline, and that means the Russian ship was patrolling in international waters, the network said. The destination of the ship was not immediately known. The ship, the SSV-175 Viktor Leonov, last sailed near the US in April 2015, an official said. The Leonov, which is outfitted with high-tech electronic spying gear, is capable of intercepting signals, known as SIGINT, as well as measuring US Navy sonar capability, another official said. The ship is also armed with surface-to-air m...

Venezuelan Vice-President Tareck El Aissami (Photo by AP) The US has imposed sanctions against Venezuelan Vice-President Tareck El Aissami over his alleged involvement in drug trafficking, in yet another hostile measure that could spark fresh tensions between the two countries. Late on Monday, the US Treasury Department blacklisted El Assiami and his associate, Venezuelan businessman Samark Lopez, over allegations of having a role in global drug trafficking. As part of the sanctions effort, 13 companies owned or controlled by Lopez -- including five based in the US state of Florida -- will be blocked and both men will be banned from entering the United States. Lopez stands accused of serving as El Aissami’s “key front-man” to launder drug proceeds and purchase assets. El Aissami, who has long denied any criminal ties, did not immediately react to Washington’s move. Since his days as interior minister, El Aissami has been the target of US law enforcement investigation over al...

A newly declassified CIA memo from the 1980s discusses how "US interests [in Syria] would be best served by a Sunni regime controlled by business-oriented 'moderates'" Matthew Allen     It was part of the plan It's public knowledge that Washington has been plotting against Syria  since the days of Eisenhower. But thanks to  a newly declassified CIA memo , we can now read Washington's heavily-redacted strategy for creating "favorable conditions" in Syria. Even back in the 1980s, it was clear that provoking a Sunni insurgency fueled by ethnic and religious hatred was the easiest way to topple the government. As the memo  notes : Sunnis make up 60 percent of the Syrian officer corps but are concentrated in junior officer ranks; enlisted men are predominantly Sunni conscripts.  We believe that a renewal of communal violence between Alawis and Sunnis could inspire Sunnis in the military to turn against the regime. The ultimate goal? Creating a ...

Alex Lockie The test-fire of Pukguksong-2. This photo was released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency on February 13.KCNA/Handout On Sunday, North Korea launched a missile into the Sea of Japan for the first time since US President Donald Trump took office. South Korean officials  told Reuters  that the missile, a land-based adaptation of the submarine-launched KN-11, doesn't have the range to strike the US but has another trait that's just as troubling, if not more: solid fuel. North Korean missiles usually rely on liquid fuel and have to be gassed up similar to how you'd fill up a car. North Korea, like many nuclear powers, mounts its nuclear-capable missiles on trucks. Road-mobile missile launchers can hide easier, launch from almost anywhere, and take an enemy by surprise - but liquid fuel complicates all that. To launch a liquid-fueled missile, a giant convoy of military trucks must drive out to a location, fuel up the rocket with the multiple types...

A senior Iranian lawmaker says any move by US President Donald Trump to leak confidential documents on the landmark 2015 nuclear agreement between Iran and the P5+1 group of countries would be harmful to the UN nuclear agency and not Iran. "If Trump wants to publish confidential documents between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), it will in fact constitute a violation of the agency's obligations, because the agency has been committed not to make Iran's confidential nuclear information and documents available to any country, including the US," Chairman of the Iranian Parliament's Committee on National Security and Foreign Policy Alaeddin Boroujerdi said on Sunday. He added that such a move by the US would pose challenges to the IAEA as an international body. During the US election campaign, reports circulated indicating that Trump would reveal certain documents on Iran's nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCP...

Handout/Getty Images Russia could return Edward Snowden to the US as a "gift" to President Donald Trump, according to two US intelligence sources  cited by NBC News on Friday. One unnamed official, who NBC said gleaned information from "a series of highly sensitive intelligence reports," said such a move could be an attempt to "curry favor" with the Trump administration. Snowden is a former US National Security Agency contractor who stole top-secret documents in 2013 that revealed mass surveillance efforts by the US government. He shared those documents with journalists. Russia has been sheltering Snowden since 2013, and recently granted him permission to stay through 2020. Trump has in the past called Snowden a  traitor  and  a spy , and suggested Snowden may have given US secrets to other countries. Snowden  denied those allegations on Friday , saying on Twitter, "I never cooperated with Russian intel. No country trades away spies, as the rest ...

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi Tehran has once again slammed Washington’s recent belligerent rhetoric and measures against Iran, saying the world is currently witnessing age-old enmity of the United States towards the Islamic Republic under the administration of President Donald Trump. Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi made the remarks on Thursday in response to the latest anti-Iran claims by White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer. The Iranian official said the news coming out every day on Trump’s decisions, false remarks by some new US officials, in addition to widespread anti-Trump protests both at home and abroad “clearly show a change of president in the US.” After taking office, the new US president ordered sweeping travel bans against a number of Muslim-majority countries, including the Islamic Republic. The order was followed by widespread domestic and international backlash. Qassemi further sai...

A political analyst has described as "ludicrous" the US policy of demonizing Iran as a threat to the world stability and "sponsor of terrorism." Robert Inlakesh has criticized the United States for spreading Iranophobia, saying that labeling Iran as “the biggest problem and the biggest cause of terrorism in the world is complete lunacy." US President Donald Trump claimed in an interview with Fox News that the Islamic Republic of Iran is “terrorist state number one.” Inlakesh noted that Washington's anti-Iran policy is not reasonable because “Iran is one of the only [players] keeping the region from completely falling apart.” An image released on January 7, 2017 shows people gathering amidst the debris at the site of a car bomb attack in the town of Azaz in northern Syria. (Photo by AFP) The United States is angry with Iran over its steadfastness in opposing American regime change policy in the Middle East, he said, noting that Washington and ...

A file photo of the US Congress in Washington, DC. A growing number of US senators from both major political parties plan to increase sanctions against Russia and give Congress the authority to prevent President Donald Trump from lifting sanctions on Moscow unilaterally. On Wednesday, a group six Republican and Democratic senators, plan to introduce legislation that would impose strict new congressional oversight and veto power over the Trump administration if it decided to lift sanctions on Russia. The Russia Sanctions Review Act is the latest warning from Congress to the new administration over Trump's desire to improve relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, and one of the co-sponsors of the bill said Russia has done nothing to be rewarded with sanctions relief. Senator Ben Cardin, a Democrat from Maryland, who also co-sponsored the bill, said the bill gives Congress the opportunity to act if it disagrees w...

US Bradley fighting vehicles that will be deployed in Latvia for NATO's Operation Atlantic Resolve wait for an unload in Garklane, Latvia February 8, 2017. (Photo by Reuters) The United States has deployed a number of tanks and other weaponry in the Baltic state of Latvia, part of the NATO military alliance's  expansion towards Russia’s border. Accompanied by the US Army's 3rd Brigade, 225 soldiers, 15 M1 Abrams tanks, six Bradley fighting vehicles and other military equipment arrived in Latvia’s northern municipality of Garkalne, Vidzeme, on Wednesday. The soldiers, who will be replacing those from 173rd Brigade, will operate in Latvia as part of NATO’s Atlantic Resolve operation, which is aimed at deterring what the US-led alliance calls “Russian aggression.” Earlier this week, over 50 units of US military equipment, including four battle tanks and 15 infantry fighting vehicles were deployed to Tapa, a city in northern Estonia, another Baltic st...

An American activist has slammed the US government for supplying militant groups in Syria with weapons, describing the United States as the source of violence around the globe. “The greatest purveyor of violence in the world is the United States government,” said Dakotah Lilly, from the Organization of Students and Youth for a New America (SYNA). “The United States has absolutely no problem with arming Wahhabi terrorists in Syria” and it has good relations with extremist groups in the Middle East and North Africa, Lilly told Press TV’s Top 5 on Wednesday. He also rejected US President Donald Trump's claims that the controversial travel ban on 7 Muslim majority countries was aimed at securing America. Back in January, the new US president signed an executive order to impose a 90-day entry ban on citizens from Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Sudan, Libya and Somalia. The US administration is using hate crimes as a pretext to blame Muslims for the domestic viol...

Vladimir Putin wants to extend his influence beyond the ballot box and into the very fabric of our public life. We must take action before it’s too late  Illustration by Sébastien Thibault The Russian  hacking of the Democratic National Committee  (DNC) and members of Hillary Clinton’s campaign is being treated too much like a novelty and not enough as a serious and persistent security threat. The problem becomes more urgent as we see it spread to other countries. WikiLeaks, which disseminated stolen DNC documents, announced last week that it would turn its attention to France, and has released material relating to presidential candidates  François Fillon  and Emmanuel Macron, opponents of Marine Le Pen. US intelligence agencies found  clear linkge between Wikileaks and the Russian state; we have to assume Russia will use these to undermine Vladimir Putin’s arch-nemesis, Angela Merkel, when she faces the far-right Alternative für Deutschland at the poll...

National flags of U.S. and China wave in front of an international hotel in Beijing February 4, 2010. (Photo by Reuters) China says it has protested to the US for putting Chinese companies and individuals on a new sanctions list targeting Iran.  Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said on Monday Beijing had "lodged representations" with Washington after Trump's administration imposed sanctions on 25 people and entities on Friday for trade with Iran. "We have consistently opposed any unilateral sanctions," Lu told a regular press briefing in Beijing. Unilateral US sanctions in the past have infuriated China. Last March, Beijing was outraged after the US government punished China’s largest telecom equipment maker ZTE Corps for alleged violations of sanctions on Iran. Read more:  China irate as US targets Iran trade China's Foreign Ministry expressed anger at the action, saying it is “opposed to the US citing domestic laws to place sanctions on Chinese ...

Saudi Arabia has pounded the port of Hudaydah in Yemen to stop the shipping of humanitarian aids into the war-ravaged country. Saudi forces have also prevented ships from entering the Yemeni port for over 20 days. The United Nations has voiced concern about the severe consequences of a long-term Saudi-imposed blockade on Yemen, which is facing a humanitarian crisis. Senior editor of Veterans Today from Ohio, Gordon Duff, believes that Russia is the power that can stand against the US-Saudi agenda in Yemen and stop the crippling war against the impoverished Arab state. “This is the war that is never going to end” unless the United Nations Security Council and one of its five permanent members, especially Russia, steps in to open the ports in Yemen, control humanitarian aid and bring about a reasonable ceasefire, Duff told Press TV. “There is a huge amount of silent complicity in the war on Yemen, which has been fought as a war against the people,” but Moscow has the capability to interv...

US President Donald Trump Iran has “total disregard” for the United States, says President Donald Trump, repeating his rhetoric against the nuclear deal between Tehran and the world powers, including Washington. The accord, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) is “the worst deal I’ve ever seen negotiated,” he said in an interview with Fox News on Sunday. Since he started campaigning for the 2016 presidential election, the New York billionaire has on several occasions spoken ill of the JCPOA, giving promises ranging from an immediate repealing of the deal to renegotiating it. His Sunday appearance still  left the “door open,”  as Fox News put it on its headline. “We’ll see what happens,” Trump said. The new president also parroted the anti-Iran rhetoric, promoted by the GOP and his cabinet members,  accusing  Tehran of supporting terrorism. “They’re sending money all over the place and weapons, and you can’t do that,” he said. “That deal,...

Chinese Ambassador to Syria Qi Qianjin (R) shakes hands with Imad Sabuni, the head of the Syrian Planning and International Cooperation Commission, after signing two agreements in the Syrian capital Damascus, February 5, 2017. (Photo by Xinhua) China is set to provide Syria with some 16 million dollars worth of humanitarian aid under cooperation agreements with the Damascus government. On Sunday, the Chinese Embassy and the Syrian Planning and International Cooperation Commission (ICC) signed two agreements, under which Beijing will send two batches of humanitarian aid worth 16 million dollars to the Arab country. China’s envoy to Syria Qi Qianjin said the aid delivery will begin soon, adding that his country has been committed to providing crisis-hit Syria with aid over the past years. “We sympathize with the Syrian people for what has befallen their country, and we are signing this agreement with the aim of bolstering friendship between the Chinese and Syrian peoples an...

Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Ali Shamkhani says   the Syria conflict cannot be resolved through political approaches as long as terrorist groups, including Daesh and Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, an affiliate of al-Qaeda formerly known as al-Nusra Front, are operating in the Arab state and supported by certain regional countries. He said some regional countries have expressed concern over the political initiatives of Iran, Russia and Turkey in Syria and do not have any sympathy for people in war-ravaged countries, but are worried that the terrorist groups they have been supporting are losing ground and on the decline. An author and journalist believes as long as the United States supports the terrorists groups in Syria, there is no possibility of a political solution to the conflict in the war-torn country. “I have said many times and I have wrote in many articles that as long as Obama remained in power, there was no possibility...