Without making references to events of the Middle Ages or even the rule of Emperor Peter the Great in Russia, it is worth starting on Russia's Baltic policy with some historical background. #1
The development of state interests in the Baltic region proceeded for nearly a thousand years, taking the form of armed fighting and dynastic deals. For example, Russian Empress Catherine the Great bought Livland, a Baltic province, from the Danish crown. For a century before World War I, the situation in the region did not change much.
During World War I, Kaiser Wilhelm's troops occupied Lithuania and a number of Latvian regions. Acting on the order of General Paul von Hindenburg, the Eastern Protectorate was created in Belarus, Lithuania and Courland occupied by Germans in June 1915. The Baltic Germans proclaimed it a zone of German colonization. Land taken from Letts in Courland was to be handed over to about 60,000 families of German settlers.
In Lithuania the occupiers established the Lietuviu Tarybos (Lithuanian Council) led by Antanas Smetona in October 1917. On December 11, the council proclaimed the "restoration of Lithuanian statehood" and adopted an act of eternal allied relations between the Lithuanian State and Germany, which were to be reinforced by a military covenant, a customs union and a common currency, the Reichsmark. Yielding to public pressure, the council issued a new act "On the Independence of Lithuania," on February 16, 1918, which did not mention the military covenant with Germany. Instead, it called on Germany and Russia to recognize the restoration of the Lithuanian State, which should become, according to the council's decision of July 4, 1918, a monarchy ruled by Prince Wilhelm of Urach, Count of Wurttemberg.
Soviet Leader Joseph Stalin and Marshal Klim Voroshilov in the Kremlin, Moscow, 1938. How to secure the defense of the Motherland, that was the principal concern at the time. As always...
Latvia was only partially occupied by the Kaiser's troops; the occupied territories were ruled by German military commandants. Russia's tsarist officials fled the unoccupied areas of the Livland Province and Courland after the 1917 February revolution. The Riga Council of Workers ordered provisional government leader Kerensky's henchmen to be expelled from the republic.
German troops had not reached Estonia when the tsarist regime fell in Russia. Several nationalist parties that sprang to life there after the 1917 February revolution, called for autonomy within Russia. Representatives of the top classes were to form the core of the gubernatorial council that was created at the time.
The situation in Latvia and Estonia changed dramatically in August 1917, when General Kornilov surrendered Riga to the Germans and a group of Estonian officers of the tsarist army helped the adversary to take the islands of Saaremaa and Muhu. The leaders of the gubernatorial council (the future dictator Konstantin Pats and Jaan Tonisson and Jaan Poska) supported Kornilov's revolt but were pushed out of power. In November 1917, the councils of workers' and peasants' deputies proclaimed the creation of the Worker Commune of Estland, which became the government of Estonia.
Pats entered a conspiracy with the Kaiser's Germany and ordered the opening of the front to the Germans, who wanted control over Tallinn, Parnu and other centers. At the same time, Pats and his team established contacts with the Entente, including in Murmansk, where British and American intervention troops were creating an Estonian Legion.
In February 1918, the Germans launched an offensive along the front from the Baltic to the Carpathians. The task of the northern group of forces was to seize Pskov and Narva and create a bridgehead for a strike at Petrograd. By February 23, the aggressor had occupied the Baltic region, Belarus and the Ukraine.
This endangered the existence of Russia as a state and a nation. The Soviet republic did not have the military resources to repel the threat of the developing interventionist coalition. To survive, it had to sign the cabal Peace Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, under which Germany retained control of the regions of the former Russian empire it had occupied by that time.
On March 8, 1918, the Kurland Landtag was convened at the initiative of the occupation forces in Mitava (Jelgava). Made up mostly of Baltic Germans, the Landtag proclaimed the creation of a Duchy of Courland under the rule of Wilhelm II, the German Emperor and King of Prussia.
A month later, the Council of Baltic Lands was created according to the same scenario. It proclaimed the secession of Latvia and Estonia from Russia and the establishment of the Baltic Duchy of Livland, Estland and Courland. The duchy, ruled by Wilhelm's brother Prince Heinrich Hohenzollern, created a personal union with Prussia. Parties, trade unions and public organizations were prohibited and local newspapers and magazines were closed down in the Baltic Duchy. German was proclaimed the one and only official language at the workplace and in schools. The duchy pursued a policy of accelerated Germanization of the Baltic region and its incorporation into the Reich.
The collapse of the German empire put an end to the Baltic Duchy and everything else that could be associated with the peace treaty of Brest-Litovsk. Moscow cancelled the peace treaty but the Entente soon provided a replacement. Under the Compiegne truce of November 11, 1918, the Germans were obliged to stay on the territories of the former Russian empire they had occupied, including Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, for maintaining order there. The Treaty of Versailles confirmed this settlement. The act of November 19, 1918 transferred civilian authority to the provisional governments of Augustinos Valdemaras (Lithuania), Karlis Ulmanis (Latvia) and Konstantin Pats (Estonia).
German and British troops were used to suppress mass protests against the intervention powers and their puppets. On February 18, 1919, the nationalist governments of Latvia and Estonia, acting on the prompting of Entente military missions, agreed to form a military union against Soviet Russia. Latvia and Lithuania signed a similar agreement on March 1. On August 26, the Entente signed an agreement with Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia on joint actions against Soviet Russia. The U.S. and Britain started delivering arms under this agreement.
A campaign was launched in late 1918 in the Latvian regions occupied by Germany to form a Russian Western Army. By early October 1919, it had about 55,000 troops, including 40,000 Germans. Its formal commander was General Bermondt-Avalov but all commanding posts were taken by officers from the corps of Ruediger von der Goltz. Avalov refused to remain subordinate to Yudenich and shamelessly flirted with Germans, who played their own game in Latvia. The Entente demanded that all German troops be pulled out of Latvia and Lithuania, which was done by mid-December 1919.
That decision had negative consequences for Britain and France, who supported and incited Pilsudski to prepare for an offensive against Kiev and Moscow in 1919-1920. At the same time, the French and British generals expected to encourage German troops to move against Soviet Russia via the Baltic region, disguised as the Western Army under the command of Avalov. But Berlin proved smart and cautious enough to refrain from this opportunistic project.
The Soviet government offered peace treaties to Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia even before the German troops had pulled out. Estonians launched talks with the Soviet government on September 17, 1919 but were in no hurry to get down to business. They waited to see the outcome of Yudenich's offensive against Petrograd, in which Estonian nationalists took part. Yudenich was routed and Estonia signed the peace treaty in Tartu on February 2, 1920.
Despite the resistance of the Entente, Latvia signed a peace treaty on August 11, 1920. A month before that, on July 12, the Soviet government signed a peace treaty with Lithuania, which recognized Lithuania's claims to Vilnius and the Vilnius region.
Peace treaties with Latvia and Lithuania were signed at the height of the Polish-Soviet war. The recognition of the secession of the Baltic republics was the price Russia paid for their non-participation in the new policy of intervention and a pledge not to provide their territory for the military actions of other states against the eastern neighbor.
It cannot be said that the obligations of the Baltic governments always matched their policy, but the peace treaties with Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania marked the first major breach in "the strategy of democracies," which Winston Churchill described by saying that Soviet Russia should be separated from Western Europe by a cordon of states that despised Bolshevism.
The Entente more than once reminded the Baltic states about their "disloyalties" of 1919 and 1920. When conflicts with Germany or Poland threatened the Balts, Britain and France usually took the side of the former. But this did not prevent the security services of Britain, France, the U.S., Germany, Sweden, Finland and Japan from establishing intelligence networks in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. Since late 1935, Germany became the predominant influence on the domestic policy of the Baltic states and started using their territory against the Soviet Union's interests.
Admiral Canaris and other senior figures in the German intelligence community had visited Estonia regularly, once a year, since 1936. Alfred Rosenberg, a notorious Nazi ideologist, supervised Latvia. German's relations with Lithuania were strained by the problems of the Vilnius region and Memel (Klaipeda).
Reacting to Britain's probing, Estonia (and subsequently Finland) categorically protested against accepting guarantees against external threats if the Soviet Union would be involved in the guarantees in any form. The signing of the non-aggression pacts between Estonia, Latvia and Germany in summer 1939 formalized that position of the Baltic states.
The situation with Lithuania was somewhat different. On March 22, 1939 it accepted von Ribbentrop's ultimatum and "ceded" the Memel region to Germany. In May that year, Lithuania demanded that Germany return the Vilnius region as compensation for Memel in the event of a German-Polish war. There is no documentary proof that Germany granted the demand, but the signing of the treaty of defense between the German Reich and the Lithuanian Republic (September 20, 1939) is quite explicit. The treaty stipulated the ensurance of "mutually complementing interests of the two countries" and Lithuania's agreement to accept "the protection of the German Reich."
That deal was soon rendered impotent by the so-called Border (Boundary) and Friendship Agreement signed by Germany and Soviet Russia on September 28, 1939. Under it, Lithuania was included in the zone of Soviet interests.
The Soviet-German non-aggression pact (the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact) signed in the night of August 23/24, 1939 was precipitated long before that fateful night. If it had had a choice, Moscow would have teamed up with Britain, France and other countries in the struggle against the Nazi threat. But the available documents show that the Soviet leadership tried in vain to convince London and Paris to abandon the policy of appeasing the aggressor. Britain hoped to put Russia and Germany against each other and come out unscathed, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Harold Ickes wrote in his diary.
In March 1939, London promised Poland to help in case of any threat, direct of indirect, to her sovereignty. The real value of our [British] guarantee to Poland is that it gives Poland a chance to come to terms with Germany, Sir Neville Henderson, Britain's ambassador to Germany, said at an August 26, 1939 session of the government.
The real goal of the talks with Moscow, which London at long last agreed to hold, was to prevent Russia from establishing any ties with Germany, Foreign Secretary Lord Halifax said. Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain was even more direct, saying he would sooner resign than sign an alliance with the Soviets.
What should Britain do if the logic of events forced it to sign a military agreement with the Kremlin? Sir John Simon, Chancellor of the Exchequer, said at a Cabinet session on July 10, 1939, that the country should ensure freedom of maneuver, so that it could tell Russia that it was not obliged to enter the war [in the event of a Nazi aggression] because it did not accept her interpretation of the facts.
The invasion of Poland was to begin before September 1, 1939 – Moscow and London knew this for sure. The Soviet leadership faced a difficult choice: To swim with the tide, remaining an aloof observer, or accept Berlin's offer of a non-aggression pact similar to the ones Germany had with Poland, Britain and France? Had the Soviet Union rejected the offer at a time when it did not have effective mutual assistance agreements with the Western democracies, Germany could have made a casus belli (a pretext for a war) of it at any opportune moment.
Even Polish researchers, who do not regard Russia in a friendly manner, admitted in the 1980s that the situation at that tragic period deprived Moscow of any chance to maneuver. They even admitted that the pre-war leadership of Poland was to blame for the failure of the attempts to create a collective security system in Europe jointly with Moscow. But the modern attempts to rewrite history are similar to the striving to find in the past a justification for a new fit of Polish haughtiness.
In principle, the mutual obligation "to desist from any act of violence, any aggressive action, and any attack on each other, either individually or jointly with other powers" (see Article 1 of the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact of August 23, 1939) was a positive achievement. But it is much more difficult to correctly interpret the secret protocols signed by the two men on August 23 and September 28, 1939.
It were these protocols, and not the non-aggression pact with Germany, that were recognized as null and void in December 1989. The USSR Congress of People's Deputies denounced them as incompatible with the Leninist principles of Soviet foreign policy. The initiative by Vytautas Landsbergis, then chairman of the Lithuanian reform movement Sajudis, to qualify the protocols as contradicting the norms of international law was rejected as unsubstantiated. Secret agreements as regards the third countries were a widespread form of political relations in the 20th century used by Britain, France, Italy, Japan and the U.S.
Besides, the protocols speak of the demarcation of 'the spheres of interests', rather than 'the zones of influence'. This is not a case of pure semantics but an attempt to set a limit to Germany's expansion, which Moscow was forced to tolerate in that situation. It was with good reason that Winston Churchill described the Soviet Union's actions at the time as the development of the eastern front. In their secret protocol of August 23, 1939, Russia and Germany recognized "the interests of Lithuania with regard to the Vilnius region."
The protocols, and the Molotov-Ribbentrop negotiations in general, did not cover the future status of the Baltic states. In June 1940, Berlin was pondering the possibility of using the annexation of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia to the Soviet Union as a pretext for attacking it immediately, and soon after the French campaign. But the Generals discouraged Hitler.
When Germany crossed the Soviet border on June 22, 1941, the incorporation of the three Baltic states in the Soviet Union was one of the main complaints to Moscow, which Berlin accused of violating the 1939 agreements and hence provoking the conflict.
The reasons for the decision of the Soviet leadership to replace control of the Baltic states with annexation are a separate subject. However, it is apparent that Moscow was guided not by ideology or nostalgia for its imperial past, but by a desire to push back the defense lines as far west of its vital areas as possible.
LEST WE FORGET THE IMMORTAL FEATS OF OUR FOREBEARS
Prof. Grover Furr About Marshal Stalin and his denigrators
This article is a real MUST READ
for anybody who seek for the truth about the Russian Soul
RUSSIA IS A SUPERPOWER – WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT
GENOCIDE IN SOUTH OSSETIA IS STOPPED!
Russian armored column is rushing to stop the genocide in South Ossetia
SAVED!
A South Ossetian military man holds a child as he looks at
an armored Russian column arrived to save them from Georgian assault
A PATH TO PEACE IN THE CAUCASUS
By Mikhail Gorbachev, 12 August 2008 The Washington Post
MOSCOW - The past week's events in South Ossetia are bound to shock and pain anyone. Already, thousands of people have died, tens of thousands have been turned into refugees, and towns and villages lie in ruins. Nothing can justify this loss of life and destruction. It is a warning to all.
The roots of this tragedy lie in the decision of Georgia's separatist leaders in 1991 to abolish South Ossetian autonomy. This turned out to be a time bomb for Georgia's territorial integrity. Each time successive Georgian leaders tried to impose their will by force – both in South Ossetia and in Abkhazia, where the issues of autonomy are similar – it only made the situation worse. New wounds aggravated old injuries.
Nevertheless, it was still possible to find a political solution. For some time, relative calm was maintained in South Ossetia. The peacekeeping force composed of Russians, Georgians and Ossetians fulfilled its mission, and ordinary Ossetians and Georgians, who live close to each other, found at least some common ground.
Through all these years, Russia has continued to recognize Georgia's territorial integrity. Clearly, the only way to solve the South Ossetian problem on that basis is through peaceful means. Indeed, in a civilized world, there is no other way.
The Georgian leadership flouted this key principle.
What happened on the night of 7th August 2008 is beyond comprehension. The Georgian military attacked the South Ossetian capital of Tskhinval with multiple rocket launchers designed to devastate large areas. Russia had to respond. To accuse it of aggression against "small, defenseless Georgia" is not just hypocritical but shows a lack of humanity.
Mounting a military assault against innocents was a reckless decision whose tragic consequences, for thousands of people of different nationalities, are now clear. The Georgian leadership could do this only with the perceived support and encouragement of a much more powerful force. Georgian armed forces were trained by hundreds of U.S. instructors, and its sophisticated military equipment was bought in a number of countries. This, coupled with the promise of NATO membership, emboldened Georgian leaders into thinking that they could get away with a "blitzkrieg" in South Ossetia.
In other words, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili was expecting unconditional support from the West, and the West had given him reason to think he would have it. Now that the Georgian military assault has been routed, both the Georgian government and its supporters should rethink their position.
Hostilities must cease as soon as possible, and urgent steps must be taken to help the victims – the humanitarian catastrophe, regretfully, received very little coverage in Western media this weekend - and to rebuild the devastated towns and villages. It is equally important to start thinking about ways to solve the underlying problem, which is among the most painful and challenging issues in the Caucasus – a region that should be approached with the greatest care.
When the problems of South Ossetia and Abkhazia first flared up, I proposed that they be settled through a federation that would grant broad autonomy to the two republics. This idea was dismissed, particularly by the Georgians. Attitudes gradually shifted, but after last week, it will be much more difficult to strike a deal even on such a basis.
Old grievances are a heavy burden. Healing is a long process that requires patience and dialogue, with non-use of force an indispensable precondition. It took decades to bring to an end similar conflicts in Europe and elsewhere, and other long-standing issues are still smoldering. In addition to patience, this situation requires wisdom.
Small nations of the Caucasus do have a history of living together. It has been demonstrated that a lasting peace is possible, that tolerance and cooperation can create conditions for normal life and development. Nothing is more important than that.
The region's political leaders need to realize this. Instead of flexing military muscle, they should devote their efforts to building the groundwork for durable peace.
Over the past few days, some Western nations have taken positions, particularly in the U.N. Security Council, that have been far from balanced. As a result, the Security Council was not able to act effectively from the very start of this conflict. By declaring the Caucasus, a region that is thousands of miles from the American continent, a sphere of its "national interest," the United States made a serious blunder. Of course, peace in the Caucasus is in everyone's interest. But it is simply common sense to recognize that Russia is rooted there by common geography and centuries of history. Russia is not seeking territorial expansion, but it has legitimate interests in this region.
The international community's long-term aim could be to create a sub-regional system of security and cooperation that would make any provocation, and the very possibility of crises such as this one, impossible. Building this type of system would be challenging and could only be accomplished with the cooperation of the region's countries themselves. Nations outside the region could perhaps help, too – but only if they take a fair and objective stance. A lesson from recent events is that geopolitical games are dangerous anywhere, not just in the Caucasus.
The writer was the last president of the Soviet Union. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1990 and is president of the Gorbachev Foundation, a Moscow think tank.
RUSSIAN BEAR WILL GROWL THEN BITE DEADLY – IF PROVOKED
Well what did else the West expect? Any self-respecting bear will growl first as a sign to ward of attackers, then pounce and maul them if provoked sufficiently.
Remember the dire fate of Napoleon, Hitler, and all the other bloody murderous scum who dared to insult Holy Russia.
The Russian Bear is confident and proud and looking more for respect in international affairs rather than a fight. But we Russians are always ready to make mincemeat of any aggressor.
With 4,237 strategic Russian warheads, approximately 2,000-3,000 operational tactical warheads, and approximately 8,000-10,000 stockpiled strategic and tactical warheads Holy Russia is being remarkably well equipped to defend herself and her allies.
RUSSIA IS A SUPERPOWER – WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT!
Some say we are five minutes to a new Cold War
This is a false assertion
In fact, with the NATO Navy entering the Black Sea
THE WORLD IS ONE MINUTE TO A THERMO-NUCLEAR WAR
It is incredible!
HOMELESS CHILDREN IN AMERICA
It is incredible for any Russian like myself
to learn about poor homeless people in the West,
and especially about homeless children in America
because formerly we used to consider the USA to be
the wealthiest and happiest country in the world
Obviously, we were wrong in thinking thusly
Friends, I must admit that despite being myself
quite a hardy, tough, and experienced man, as I am
nevertheless
I could not hold back my bitter tears
when I was watching this
extremely heartbreaking video
Click on the picture to watch it yourself
No true Christian can ever watch this video
without tears in the eyes!
Now, you will have to realize
why we Russians love and esteem Stalin:
This is because
Stalin denied the Soviet children
the "freedom" to be homeless
he denied all of us the "freedom"
to sleep and perish in the street
as in America
IN THE SOVIET UNION
NO ONE HAD THE "RIGHT"
EITHER TO BE HOMELESS, OR UNEMPLOYED
OR TO LIVE AND DIE IN THE STREET
HELPLESS AND ABANDONED
AS IN AMERICA
ALL OF THE SOVIET PEOPLE
WERE DENIED SUCH WESTERN "HUMAN RIGHTS"
BY THE STALIN'S REGIME
In this regard I suggest that
you should have a look at the shrewd observations
by an American expat now living in Russia:
click HERE
IS THE WEST HELL?
NO, IT IS NOT HELL
THE WEST IS TERRIBLE HELL
With all its benignity and peoples' fraternity
inasmuch as the former Soviet Union used to serve
so today's Russia continues to serve as an open rebuke
to the Western infernally inhuman and godless way of life
And this is the only true reason
why Russia has been hated, defamed and reviled so much
by the West's ruling class and the media under their control
No wonder!
Freedom of Speech conquerred Freedom of Thought
Once a year, and even more often, the tragedy happens in America: the schooler buys weapon, goes to school and shoots at whom he meets. Why such things are accidental in Russia, China or Europe?
The Human Rights Disaster in the United States of America
An excerpt from the
REPORT
Each year, 30,000 people die in gun-related incidents in the USA.
There were 14,180 murders in 2008.
In the first ten months of 2009, 45 people were killed by police use of tasers, bringing the total for the decade to 389.
In 2008, 315 police officers in New York City were subject to internal supervision due to "unrestrained use of violence."
7.3 million Americans were under the authority of the correctional system, more than in any other country.
An estimated 60,000 prisoners were raped while in custody last year.
On democratic rights, the report notes the pervasive government spying on citizens, authorized under the 2001 Patriot Act, extensive surveillance of the Internet by the National Security Agency, and police harassment of anti-globalization demonstrators in Pittsburgh during 2008 G-20 summit. Pointing to the hypocrisy of US government "human rights" rhetoric, the authors observe,
"the same conduct in other countries would be called human rights violations, whereas in the United States it was called necessary crime control."
It does offer a few facts rarely discussed in the US media:
712 bodies were cremated at public expense in the city of Los Angeles last year, because the families were too poor to pay for a burial.
There were 5,657 workplace deaths recorded in 2007, the last year for which a tally is available, a rate of 17 deaths per day (not a single employer was criminally charged for any of these deaths).
Some 2,266 veterans died as a consequence of lack of health insurance in 2008, 14 times the military death toll in Afghanistan that year.
All this said, I do by no means wish, however,
that my readers could come to a wrong conclusion
that we Russians might have ever hated Americans
No, not at the least!
The following website will show you
WHICH AMERICA WE RUSSIANS LOVE
Click on the picture to have a look at
a huge collection of fascinating portraits of
the Americans in San Francisco, San Jose,
Carmel, Monterey, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz
and other places of the United States
THIS IS JUST THE AMERICA
WE RUSSIANS DO ALWAYS LOVE
It is worth being noticed here also that even in the height of the so-called Cold War, in the mid-1960s we used to consider America as a friendly country.
Why "the so-called"?
Because we Russian chidren had never been taught to regard the Americans as enemies. Hence we did never think about whatever "Cold War" at all.
Nor we Russians had ever had such moronism as the "Duck and Cover" idiotic drills like the American children had to have at the time.
On the contrary, we Russians never feared anything, which is why during the so-called Cold War in our cinemas we enjoyed watching good American movies that were perfectly dubbed into the Russian language, without any subtitles. I can recall how we Russian boys in the 1960s went to watch The Magnificent Seven film scores of times on end (sic!), over and over again, because the tickets in the USSR were incredibly cheap and the American movie was brilliant, most impressive and absolutely exciting.
I do remember by heart almost all of the dialogues from the famous movie The Magnificent Seven even to the present day, despite the fact that it is almost fifty years that have already lapsed since those blessed times of our youth. Of course we knew well that the famous Hollywood actor Yul Brynner was of the Russian descent, and we Russian boys were then very proud of the fact.
You can watch a short (3 min) trailer from the famous American movie
THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN
by clicking on the picture
ARE YOU READY FOR NUCLEAR WAR?
The Mindlessness is Total
By Paul Craig Roberts, August 19 2008
Nothing real issues from the American press, which is about demonizing Russia and Iran, about the vice presidential choices as if it matters, about whether Obama being on vacation let McCain score too many points.
The mindlessness of the news reflects the mindlessness of the government, for which it is a spokesperson.
The American media do not serve American democracy or American interests. They serve the few people who exercise power.
When the Soviet Union collapsed, the US and Israel made a run at controlling Russia and the former constituent parts of its empire. For awhile the US and Israel succeeded, but Putin put a stop to it.
Recognizing that the US had no intention of keeping any of the agreements it had made with Gorbachev, Putin directed the Russian military budget to upgrading the Russian nuclear deterrent. Consequently, the Russian army and air force lack the smart weapons and electronics of the US military.
When the Russian army went into Georgia to rescue the Russians in South Ossetia from the destruction being inflicted upon them by the American puppet Saakashvili, the Russians made it clear that if they were opposed by American troops with smart weapons, they would deal with the threat with tactical nuclear weapons.
The Americans were the first to announce preemptive nuclear attack as their permissible war doctrine. Now the Russians have announced the tactical use of nuclear weapons as their response to American smart weapons.
It is obvious that American foreign policy, with its goal of ringing Russia with US military bases, is leading directly to nuclear war. Every American needs to realize this fact. The US government’s insane hegemonic foreign policy is a direct threat to life on the planet.
Russia has made no threats against America. The post-Soviet Russian government has sought to cooperate with the US and Europe. Russia has made it clear over and over that it is prepared to obey international law and treaties. It is the Americans who have thrown international law and treaties into the trash can, not the Russians.
In order to keep the billions of dollars in profits flowing to its contributors in the US military-security complex, the Bush Regime has rekindled the cold war. As American living standards decline and the prospects for university graduates deteriorate, "our" leaders in Washington commit us to a hundred years of war.
If you desire to be poor, oppressed, and eventually vaporized in a nuclear war, vote Republican.
This is the final part of an article by P. C. Roberts.
Warning
This video contains images depicting the reality and horror
of war/violence and should only be viewed by a mature audience
with their nerves of steel
Massacre Caught on Tape: US Military Confirms Authenticity of Their Own Chilling Video Showing Killing of Journalists
One of the men on the ground, believed to be Chmagh, is seen wounded and trying to crawl to safety. One of the helicopter crew is heard wishing for the man to reach for a gun, even though there is none visible nearby, so he has the pretext for opening fire: "All you gotta do is pick up a weapon." A van draws up next to the wounded man and Iraqis climb out. They are unarmed and start to carry the victim to the vehicle in what would appear to be an attempt to get him to hospital. One of the helicopters opens fire with armour-piercing shells. "Look at that. Right through the windshield," says one of the crew. Another responds with a laugh.
Sitting behind the windscreen were two children who were wounded.
† HOME – Dedicated to the Blessed Memory of those millions of valiant men, women, children and old
people who gave their lives in the sacred fighting for the freedom and independence of our Motherland during the Great Patriotic War in 1941 – 1945.
† Germany harps on Communist crimes to hush up Nazi Atrocities, says Wehrmacht's war veteran.
† PATRIARCH – Message by His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia on the occasion of the
60th Anniversary of the Glorious Victory in the Great Patriotic War † A unique photo of the Patriarch inside the sanctum sanctorum of the Christ the Saviour Cathedral, Moscow
† GLANTZ - 1 – American Perspectives on Eastern Front Operations in World War II
by Colonel David M. Glantz, Part One
† GLANTZ - 2 – Postwar American perspective on Eastern Front operations
by Colonel David M. Glantz, Part Two
† GLANTZ - 3 – Soviet Sources on Eastern Front operations: Perceptions and Reality
by Colonel David M. Glantz, Part Three
† BALTIC
† BARBAROSSA – 1941: Year of the Truth. Nazi Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union, by Dr. Valentin Falin
† The glorious defense of the Fortress of Brest
† WHY NOT 1943? – The War could have ended in 1943: The wiles of the West,
by Dr. Valentin Falin
† DYKMAN – The Soviet Experience in World War Two: The numbers, the savagery, the differencies between
the war in the East and the West, by J.T. Dykman, the Eisenhower Institute, Washington, D.C.
† WINTER – General Frost: Fighting the Russians in Winter,
by Allen F. Chew, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
"The Russian winter defeated Napoleon, as every Frenchman knows. It also defeated Hitler, as most Germans know. Many Americans share that "knowledge" which is false in both cases! Those popular myths illustrate the uncritical acceptance and perpetuation of rationalizations designed to obscure the fact that those "invincible" Western military paragons were humbled by the 'inferior' Russians"
† APPEAL – The most important appeal to the Nation: Stalin's Radio Address, Moscow, 3rd July 1941
"Comrades!
Citizens!
Brothers and sisters!
Men of our Army and Navy! My words are addressed to you, my dear friends!"
† WARLORD – The Supreme Commander-in-Chief: Stalin as Warlord,
by Prof. Gerhard Rempel, Western New England College
† YALTA – The Crimean Conference: A Chance the World Missed, by Dr. Valentin Falin and Victor Litovkin
† CHURCHILL – On the Question of Poland: Statement by Prime Minister Winston Churchill to the House of Commons, 27th February 1945 † The Curzon Line
† VICTORY – The Great Victory in May 1945
The hard-won Victory was achieved by the Soviet Union's "Red Army which tore the guts out of the German Army", as Churchill admitted, in glorious military alliance with the United Kingdom of Great Britain and the United States of America, over the juggernaut of the so-called Axis: Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, Militarist Japan, and their satellites: Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Finland, and Bulgaria. The Axis states were supported by all the manpower, industry and resources of almost all Continental Europe, North Africa, and South-East Asia under their control.
† Stalin's Orders. Profusely illustrated. The VICTORY webpage also features a unique picture which was never before posted on the Internet: Captive German military banners and standards flung down in dishonour at the Victors' feet after the Great Victory Parade on the Red Square in Moscow on the 24th of June 1945
† FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions
The Body Count and GULAG † The Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact, the Curzon Line and the so-called 4th partition of Poland
WHO WAS STALIN? A World-Known Anti-Soviet Dissident and a Former Rabid Anti-Stalinist Has Said His Say
Click: ALEXANDER ZINOVIEV – "Even a Donkey Can Kick a Dead Lion"
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