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War
- Thread starter Creeperpark
- Start date
Considering the track record of your sources I will take that and anything else with a good pinch of salt.
The media lied for trump to cover for him? He was getting paid to influence his foreign policy? Pretty big stretch.
Says the self described propagandist.
Watch the video of it. Isn't that what you posted?
Maybe you didn't feel the video footage was dramatic enough to accompany your "hypersonic missile" propaganda?
Montuno
...como el Son...
Putin's darkest speech: he asks to "purify" Russia from "scum and traitors"
The Russian president warns of a purge against dissidents: "They will spit them out like a fly that enters their mouths."
03/17/2022 02:12pm CET | Updated March 17, 2022
First, he set out to “denazify” Ukraine , a pretext (meaningless) that served him to invade the neighboring country, attack and besiege it. Now the president of Russia, Vladimir Putin , says he wants to "purify" Russian society, throwing out "the scum and the traitors" from the country.
Putin's words were broadcast on Russian television on Wednesday as part of an intervention by the president at a meeting with senior officials of his government. The message, on the other hand, went further, and sounded like a clear warning to opponents, to any citizen who considers himself pro-Western and, to a certain extent, also to the oligarchs.
“I don't judge those who have villas in Miami or on the French Riviera. Nor to those who cannot live without oysters, or foie gras or the so-called 'gender freedoms'. The problem is that mentally they are there, and not here, with our people, with Russia, " Putin said on camera . “That is, in his opinion, a sign of belonging to a higher caste, a superior race. Those people are willing to sell their own mother, if only to be allowed to sit in the hall of a higher caste. They want to be like her and imitate her in every way, ”he launched.
“I am convinced that a natural and necessary self-purification of society will strengthen our country”
Putin thus warned of a repression against anyone who dissents from the 'motherland' or who is seduced by the 'luxuries' of the West – also considering LGTBI rights a luxury.
"[The Russians] will always know how to distinguish true patriots from scum and traitors, and will simply spit them out like a fly that enters their mouth," Putin said. "I am convinced that a natural and necessary self-purification of society will strengthen our country," said the Russian.
Warning to the "traitors" who seek to "divide" society
Vladimir Putin maintains that "the West will try to bet on the so-called fifth column , on the traitors", to "divide our society", "provoke civil confrontation" and "achieve its objective". "And they have only one: the destruction of Russia," he noted.
The authoritarian measures of the Russian government have been growing as the war progresses and Russia takes time to achieve its objectives , generating more deaths on both sides and adding harsh sanctions from the West to the Russian side.
After closing media outlets and social networks, banning talk of "war", threatening journalists with up to 15 years in prison for spreading "false information" and arresting thousands of demonstrators for protesting, the repression of the Russian regime it could get even tougher, judging by Vladimir Putin's latest speech.
https://www.huffingtonpost.es/amp/e...oria-y-traidores_es_62332766e4b046c938d79087/
Ukraine's foreign fighters ridicule American Boogaloo Boy who RAN AWAY when he realised he'd actually have to fight Russians in Kyiv with the kit he was given and complained he'd been lured into 'trap'
- Henry Hoeft joined thousands of foreign fighters in Ukraine to join the war
- The 28-year-old is a former U.S. infantryman associated with the Boogaloo Boys
- In a video this week, he said he fled the fighting in the back of an ambulance
- He also made a series of claims about foreign fighters not being allowed to leave
- However, other foreign legion fighters have hit back disputing his claims
Montuno
...como el Son...
Putin's darkest speech: he asks to "purify" Russia from "scum and traitors"The Russian president warns of a purge against dissidents: "They will spit them out like a fly that enters their mouths."By Marina Velasco03/17/2022 02:12pm CET | Updated March 17, 2022
First, he set out to “denazify” Ukraine , a pretext (meaningless) that served him to invade the neighboring country, attack and besiege it. Now the president of Russia, Vladimir Putin , says he wants to "purify" Russian society, throwing out "the scum and the traitors" from the country.
Putin's words were broadcast on Russian television on Wednesday as part of an intervention by the president at a meeting with senior officials of his government. The message, on the other hand, went further, and sounded like a clear warning to opponents, to any citizen who considers himself pro-Western and, to a certain extent, also to the oligarchs.
“I don't judge those who have villas in Miami or on the French Riviera. Nor to those who cannot live without oysters, or foie gras or the so-called 'gender freedoms'. The problem is that mentally they are there, and not here, with our people, with Russia, " Putin said on camera . “That is, in his opinion, a sign of belonging to a higher caste, a superior race. Those people are willing to sell their own mother, if only to be allowed to sit in the hall of a higher caste. They want to be like her and imitate her in every way, ”he launched.
“I am convinced that a natural and necessary self-purification of society will strengthen our country”
Putin thus warned of a repression against anyone who dissents from the 'motherland' or who is seduced by the 'luxuries' of the West – also considering LGTBI rights a luxury.
"[The Russians] will always know how to distinguish true patriots from scum and traitors, and will simply spit them out like a fly that enters their mouth," Putin said. "I am convinced that a natural and necessary self-purification of society will strengthen our country," said the Russian.
Warning to the "traitors" who seek to "divide" society
Vladimir Putin maintains that "the West will try to bet on the so-called fifth column , on the traitors", to "divide our society", "provoke civil confrontation" and "achieve its objective". "And they have only one: the destruction of Russia," he noted.
The authoritarian measures of the Russian government have been growing as the war progresses and Russia takes time to achieve its objectives , generating more deaths on both sides and adding harsh sanctions from the West to the Russian side.
After closing media outlets and social networks, banning talk of "war", threatening journalists with up to 15 years in prison for spreading "false information" and arresting thousands of demonstrators for protesting, the repression of the Russian regime it could get even tougher, judging by Vladimir Putin's latest speech.
https://www.huffingtonpost.es/amp/en...046c938d79087/
Vladimir Putin maintains that "the West will try to bet on the so-called fifth column , on the traitors", to "divide our society", "provoke civil confrontation" and "achieve its objective". "And they have only one: the destruction of Russia," he noted.
" Fifth column " is an expression used to designate, in a situation of military confrontation, a sector of the population that maintains certain loyalties (real or perceived) towards the enemy side, due to religious, economic, ideological or ethnic reasons. Such a characteristic makes the fifth column be seen as a group of people potentially disloyal to the community in which they live and likely to collaborate in different ways with the enemy.
World War II US propaganda poster caricatures the fifth column as they attempt to sabotage the war effort and pervert the country's values.OriginEdit
The term "fifth column" originated in Spain (originally quinta columna) during the early phase of the Spanish Civil War. It gained popularity in the Loyalist faction media in early October 1936 and immediately started to spread abroad.[SUP][1][/SUP]
The exact origins of the term are not clear. Its first identified appearance was in a secret telegram sent to Berlin by the German chargé d'affaires in Alicante, Hans Hermann Völckers, dated September 30, 1936. He referred to an unidentified "supposed statement by Franco" which "is being circulated" (apparently in the Republican zone or in the Republican-held Levantine zone). In the statement, Franco allegedly claimed that there were four Nationalist columns approaching Madrid and a fifth column waiting to attack from the inside.[SUP][2][/SUP] However, the telegram was part of the secret German diplomatic correspondence and was discovered long after the civil war.
The first identified public use of the term is in the October 3, 1936, issue of the Madrid Communist daily Mundo Obrero. In a front-page article, the party propagandist Dolores Ibárruri referred to a very similar or the same statement as the one reported by Völckers but attributed it to General Emilio Mola.[SUP][3][/SUP] On the same day, the PCE activist Domingo Girón made a similar claim during a public rally.[SUP][4][/SUP] During the following days, Republican papers repeated the story but with differing detail; some attributed the phrase to General Queipo de Llano.[SUP][5][/SUP] In mid-October, the media already warned of the "famous fifth column".[SUP][6][/SUP]
Historians have never identified the original statement referred to by Völckers, Ibárruri, de Jong, and others.[SUP][7][/SUP] The transcripts of Francisco Franco's, Gonzalo Queipo de Llano's, and Emilio Mola's radio addresses have been published, but they do not contain the term,[SUP][8][/SUP] and no other original statement containing this phrase has ever surfaced. A British journalist who took part in Mola's press conference on October 28, 1936, claimed that Mola referred to quinta columna on this very day,[SUP][9][/SUP] but at that time the term had already been used in the Republican press for more than three weeks.[SUP][10][/SUP]
Historiographic works offer differing perspectives on authorship of the term. Many scholars have no doubt about Mola's role and refer to "fifth column" as to "a term coined in 1936 by General Emilio Mola",[SUP][11][/SUP] though they admit that the exact statement cannot be identified.[SUP][12][/SUP] In some sources Mola is noted as a person who used the term during an impromptu press interview, and different though detailed versions of the exchange are offered.[SUP][13][/SUP] Probably the most popular version refers the theory of Mola's authorship with a grade of doubt, either noting that it is presumed but never proven[SUP][14][/SUP] or that the phrase "is attributed" to Mola,[SUP][15][/SUP] who "apparently claimed" so,[SUP][16][/SUP] or they note "la famosa quinta columna a la que parece que se había referido el general Mola."[SUP][17][/SUP] Some authors consider it possible if not likely that the term has been invented by the Communist propaganda with the purpose of either raising morale or providing justification for terror and repression; initially it might have been part of the whispering campaign, but was later openly floated by Communist propagandists.[SUP][18][/SUP] There are also other theories afloat.[SUP][19][/SUP]
Some writers, mindful of the origin of the phrase, use it only in reference to military operations rather than the broader and less well defined range of activities that sympathizers might engage in to support an anticipated attack.[SUP][a][/SUP]
The expression is attributed to General Emilio Mola , when he referred in a 1936 radio announcement to the advance of the rebel troops in the Spanish Civil War towards Madrid . The general mentioned that, while under his command four columns were heading towards the capital (one advancing from Toledo , another along the Extremadura highway , another through the Sierra , and Sigüenza ), there was a fifth made up of supporters of the coup d'état who, inside the capital, worked clandestinely for the victory of the coup side. [SUP][ 1 ][/SUP]According to other authors, such as Mikhail Koltsov , a correspondent for the Moscow newspaper Pravda and Stalin 's personal envoy to Spain , it was General José Enrique Varela who pronounced the phrase. [SUP][ 2 ][/SUP] The expression became popular during the war as evidenced by its presence in different chronicles of it. [SUP][ 3[/SUP] ]
This idea and expression subsequently passed into all subsequent wars, such as World War II , and was thus called to the French who, residing within France, awaited the triumph of Nazi Germany in 1940 . This term was extended in the Netherlands and Norway for its citizens who showed more sympathy and loyalty towards the Third Reich than towards its leaders, supporting the invasion of their countries of origin. Similarly, partisans clandestinely fighting fascism in their own countries were viewed by Axis sympathizers as a fifth column.
Members of the fifth column are referred to as fifth columnists .
HistoryEditIn the Spanish Civil WarEdit
Main articles: Spanish Civil War and Second Spanish Republic at war .
The Spanish general Emilio Mola , who is credited with the expressionDuring the Spanish civil war, internal resistance and boycott activities took place, both in the rebel zone and in the republican zone , since the military control of one or the other side did not necessarily correspond to the political tendencies of the majority of the population in each place and, furthermore, because the dynamics of war itself always favor violent excesses and snitching.
However, the fifth column was especially active in besieged Madrid . The great length of the front that surrounded the city, the high population density in the city and its symbolic and strategic importance, the largest city in the Republican zone that was located on the same war front, would make it the scene of a constant flow of information from the popular front zone to the insurgent zone. After the defeat of the rebels in the capital, in the first week we witness the actions of the " pacos ", snipers who fired at the militiamen from buildings or moving cars. Later the blue circlesthey will focus on demoralizing the republican militias by various means (distribution of propaganda leaflets, fomenting defeatist rumours, weapons sabotage, radio broadcasts, etc.).
The propaganda of the Republican government will notably affect the need to be alert to the internal enemy and, in the spring of 1937, two groups of resistance will be dismantled in Madrid, of which twelve people will be sentenced to death the same year.
Precisely to counteract all anti-republican activities, in August of that same year the SIM ( Military Information Service ) and the DEDIDE ( Special State Information Department ) were created, which had their own agents and prisons. However, these organizations will not search the republican zone only in search of so-called factions , but will also repress members of dissident formations such as the POUM (Workers' Party of Marxist Unification), which rivaled the Communist Party of Spain at that time .
The role of the Madrid fifth column was very important in the last moments of the war, in March 1939, in the initiative of Colonel Segismundo Casado against the government of Juan Negrín . On those dates, the resistance carried out important information tasks in favor of the insurgent side and also acted as a link between Franco's headquarters and the Casadista Junta with a view to agreeing on the surrender of the Popular Front in the central zone.
...During the war a large number of ambushed Fifth Column organizations emerged in Madrid. Their activities were not carried out in isolation, but were organized, systematized actions, following the guidelines of the Francoist command; it was the clandestine Falange that was organized and headed in Madrid by Manuel Valdés Larrañaga , a Falangist and a personal friend of José Antonio Primo de Rivera , founder of the Falange . The number of clandestine organizations reached twenty, although not all with the same weight or with the same importance. Among the most important of the clandestine Falange, the so-called Brotherhood Auxilio Azul María Paz stood out., made up of Falangist women, but the Antonio Bouthelier Group , Las Hojas delCalendar and the Antonio Organization also deserve mention . The latter, above all, because of the activity of its agents during the last year of war...
CERVERA GIL , Javier . "The Fifth Column (1936-1939)", in the Madrid Encyclopedia. Twentieth century
In other cities, such as Barcelona , Valencia , Santander or Alicante , the role played by the fifth column was also of great importance and help for the rebel strategy. In Santander, in addition to taking the city prior to the arrival of the rebel troops, the 'fifth column' fired at the fishing boats that tried to reach the French coast via the Cantabrian route with those fleeing the rebel offensive.
during other warsEdit
During World War II , after the attack on Pearl Harbor , the internment of citizens of Japanese origin from the West Coast of the United States was justified on the grounds that these citizens, being of Japanese origin, could act as a fifth column . In the United Kingdom , this operation was repeated with numerous German residents, detained on the Isle of Man until the end of the conflict. Shortly after the Nazi attack on the Soviet Union in 1941, Stalin 's government arrested and deported all Soviets of German origin residing in the Soviet Union to Central Asia .Volga German Autonomous Republic , fearing that they might form a fifth column in support of the invading army.
In that same conflict, organizations of the German minority in Poland and Czechoslovakia formed the Selbstschutz (self-defense), which actively collaborated with the Third Reich .
Irish Catholic residents of the United Kingdom have also been considered Fifth Columnists by Unionists due to unrest during the 20th century (see Guildford Four and Birmingham Six ).
https://es.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quinta_columna
Montuno
...como el Son...
UCRANIA vs RUSSIA WAR:
7 years ago in the center of Donetsk, armed clash in front of the cameras of the Spanish TV channels "Antena 3" and "La 6°': allegedly, pro-Russian militias are fighting another pro-European militia (not linked to the Ukrainian army) which is allegedly holding pro-Russian policemen and civilians:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HM26P5fcJuc
7 years ago in the center of Donetsk, armed clash in front of the cameras of the Spanish TV channels "Antena 3" and "La 6°': allegedly, pro-Russian militias are fighting another pro-European militia (not linked to the Ukrainian army) which is allegedly holding pro-Russian policemen and civilians:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HM26P5fcJuc
ButterflyEffect
Well-known member
So says the number one delusional shitposter
ButterflyEffect
Well-known member
Children, nothing more.
ButterflyEffect
Well-known member
Right. Of course, he was. What garbage source is telling you that lie?
Montuno
...como el Son...
https://www.ecsaharaui.com/2022/03/l...me-espana.html
Half of the gas that Spain consumes comes from Algeria, and it is at risk :
SATURDAY, MARCH 19, 2022
By Sidi Maatala
Madrid (ESC). - Algeria is the main supplier of natural gas to Spain, with almost 50% of the total last year. The Sánchez government "trusts" that the sharp turn in the Western Sahara conflict will not affect supply.
The sudden change in position of the Government of Pedro Sánchez in the face of the conflict in Western Sahara, a territory occupied by Morocco since 1975, may open an energy crisis in Spain. According to the newspaper ABC, the support of the Government of Sánchez to Morocco for the autonomy plan for Western Sahara could strain Madrid's relations with Algeria, the main gas tap for Spain.
Last year, Spain imported almost 50% of this raw material from the North African country, which currently reaches Spain through the Medgaz gas pipeline, which directly links the Hassi R'Mel deposits in Algeria with Almería.
On the other hand, Algeria is the third largest supplier of gas in Europe, where 83 percent of its exports arrive, with Spain and Italy as the main destination countries -in 2021 they added 65 percent of the total-. Last year it exported 55 bcm to the continent, compared to 38.2 bcm in 2020.
Rabat has managed to impose its position on the Pedro Sánchez Executive, which would support its autonomy plan for Western Sahara and rule out the referendum on self-determination for the Saharawi people. The problem is that Algeria is a staunch defender of the Saharawi people, as well as the main supplier of gas to Spain.
In this context, Algiers called its ambassador in Madrid, Spain, for consultations today, following the declarations of the Spanish government on the conflict in Western Sahara. In a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to which ECSAHARAI has received a copy, it is pointed out that the decision to summon the Algerian ambassador to Spain comes after official Spanish statements on the Saharawi issue. The same statement added that the Algerian authorities were very surprised by the statements.
https://www.ecsaharaui.com/2022/03/l...me-espana.html
Half of the gas that Spain consumes comes from Algeria, and it is at risk :
SATURDAY, MARCH 19, 2022
By Sidi Maatala
Madrid (ESC). - Algeria is the main supplier of natural gas to Spain, with almost 50% of the total last year. The Sánchez government "trusts" that the sharp turn in the Western Sahara conflict will not affect supply.
The sudden change in position of the Government of Pedro Sánchez in the face of the conflict in Western Sahara, a territory occupied by Morocco since 1975, may open an energy crisis in Spain. According to the newspaper ABC, the support of the Government of Sánchez to Morocco for the autonomy plan for Western Sahara could strain Madrid's relations with Algeria, the main gas tap for Spain.
Last year, Spain imported almost 50% of this raw material from the North African country, which currently reaches Spain through the Medgaz gas pipeline, which directly links the Hassi R'Mel deposits in Algeria with Almería.
On the other hand, Algeria is the third largest supplier of gas in Europe, where 83 percent of its exports arrive, with Spain and Italy as the main destination countries -in 2021 they added 65 percent of the total-. Last year it exported 55 bcm to the continent, compared to 38.2 bcm in 2020.
Rabat has managed to impose its position on the Pedro Sánchez Executive, which would support its autonomy plan for Western Sahara and rule out the referendum on self-determination for the Saharawi people. The problem is that Algeria is a staunch defender of the Saharawi people, as well as the main supplier of gas to Spain.
In this context, Algiers called its ambassador in Madrid, Spain, for consultations today, following the declarations of the Spanish government on the conflict in Western Sahara. In a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to which ECSAHARAI has received a copy, it is pointed out that the decision to summon the Algerian ambassador to Spain comes after official Spanish statements on the Saharawi issue. The same statement added that the Algerian authorities were very surprised by the statements.
https://www.ecsaharaui.com/2022/03/l...me-espana.html
ButterflyEffect
Well-known member
Montuno
...como el Son...
In the same week that the EU supports the right to self-determination of the Saharawi people, the US Congress does not recognize Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara, Sánchez supports the Moroccan occupation while condemning Russia :
SATURDAY, MARCH 19, 2022
Sidi Maatala.
ECS. Madrid. | This week the Saharawi issue has been very present on the international scene. The POLISARIO Front held meetings with senior UN officials, the EU showed its support for the right to self-determination as a solution to the conflict and is awaiting the final sentence due to the annulment of the EU-Morocco agreements for including the occupied territories of the Occidental Sahara. For its part, the US Congress confirmed that it did not recognize any Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara. And on Friday, the Spanish government of PSOE-PODEMOS broke with a decades-old state policy by abandoning neutrality and openly positioning itself in favor of the occupying force: the Kingdom of Morocco, in its brutal military invasion of Western Sahara.
Yesterday, Friday, in the context of the sanctions against Russia for invading Ukraine, Pedro Sánchez, without notifying his government, sent a letter to King Mohamed VI in which he broke with the traditional neutrality in the Saharawi conflict and allied himself with the occupying forceWestern Sahara, in contravention of international law, the will of the Spanish people, its members of the government and even its electoral program. Spain "recognizes the importance of the issue of Western Sahara for Morocco" and "considers the Moroccan autonomy initiative, presented in 2007, as the most serious, realistic and credible basis for resolving this dispute," reads the statement released by the Palace. Real of Morocco, and to which ECSAHARAUI has had access. The letter also underlines Morocco's "serious and credible" efforts within the UN framework to find a mutually acceptable solution” to the Western Sahara conflict. A turn that has outraged both the opposition and its partners.
https://www.ecsaharaui.com/2022/03/en-la-misma-semana-que-la-ue-apoya-el.html?m=1
SATURDAY, MARCH 19, 2022
Sidi Maatala.
ECS. Madrid. | This week the Saharawi issue has been very present on the international scene. The POLISARIO Front held meetings with senior UN officials, the EU showed its support for the right to self-determination as a solution to the conflict and is awaiting the final sentence due to the annulment of the EU-Morocco agreements for including the occupied territories of the Occidental Sahara. For its part, the US Congress confirmed that it did not recognize any Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara. And on Friday, the Spanish government of PSOE-PODEMOS broke with a decades-old state policy by abandoning neutrality and openly positioning itself in favor of the occupying force: the Kingdom of Morocco, in its brutal military invasion of Western Sahara.
On March 15, in an official statement, the Commission of the European Union said that it supports the efforts of the Secretary General of the United Nations to achieve a just and lasting political solution in Western Sahara, based on the self-determination of the people of the Sahara. Western and in accordance with the principles and purposes of the Charter of the United Nations. The Commission underlined that the EU's position on Western Sahara is guided by UN Security Council resolutions, which consider Western Sahara to be a Non-Self-Governing Territory whose final status will be determined by the outcome of the ongoing process led by the ONU. Subsequently, the two Law and Commerce Commissions of the European Parliament dedicated aspecial session to discuss the "relationship between human rights and trade in the context of non-autonomous and occupied territories" with a focus on Moroccan- occupied Western Sahara.
Four days after the EU decision, in another public statement, the president pro tempore of the US Senate, Senator Patrick Leahy, confirmed the refusal of the US Congress to recognize the supposed sovereignty of Morocco on Western Sahara citing that the State Appropriations and Foreign Operations Act for fiscal year 2022 does not include Western Sahara with Morocco, but separately, thus renewing its call for a change in US foreign policy regarding Western Sahara. A requirement requested last week by other congressmen.Yesterday, Friday, in the context of the sanctions against Russia for invading Ukraine, Pedro Sánchez, without notifying his government, sent a letter to King Mohamed VI in which he broke with the traditional neutrality in the Saharawi conflict and allied himself with the occupying forceWestern Sahara, in contravention of international law, the will of the Spanish people, its members of the government and even its electoral program. Spain "recognizes the importance of the issue of Western Sahara for Morocco" and "considers the Moroccan autonomy initiative, presented in 2007, as the most serious, realistic and credible basis for resolving this dispute," reads the statement released by the Palace. Real of Morocco, and to which ECSAHARAUI has had access. The letter also underlines Morocco's "serious and credible" efforts within the UN framework to find a mutually acceptable solution” to the Western Sahara conflict. A turn that has outraged both the opposition and its partners.
For its part, Algeria, a neighbor of Western Sahara and Morocco, was surprised to describe it as a "second Spanish betrayal," alluding to the infamous Tripartite Agreements of Madrid by which Spain handed over the non-autonomous territory of Western Sahara to Morocco and Mauritania in 1975 . which withdrew his ambassador from Madrid and recalled him for consultation. As expected, Algeria does not look favorably on Sánchez's decision since it inflames the North African region in addition to unconditionally supporting the Saharawi peoplehttps://www.ecsaharaui.com/2022/03/en-la-misma-semana-que-la-ue-apoya-el.html?m=1
Montuno
...como el Son...
President of the US Senate confirms that Congress does not recognize any Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara:
SATURDAY, MARCH 19, 2022
Salem Muhammad.
ECS. Washington. | In a public statement, US Senate President Senator Patrick Leahy, who also serves as Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee and a Senior Senator from Vermont, affirmed the US Congress's denial. to recognize Morocco's alleged sovereignty over Western Sahara citing that the Law on State Allocations and Foreign Operations for fiscal year 2022 does not include Western Sahara with Morocco, but separately, thus renewing its call for a change in foreign policy American regarding Western Sahara . A requirement requested a week ago by other congressmen.
'' Unlike in recent years, Congress did not include Western Sahara in Morocco in the Law. That is because the Fiscal Year 2022 Law, like the United Nations, does not recognize Western Sahara as part of Morocco . Assistance for Western Sahara is included in another part of the Law , within the framework of the Partnership Initiative with the Middle East.'' Senator Leahy indicated in his note.Unlike in recent years, Congress has not included Western Sahara in the Morocco-related clause in the 2022 Finance Act signed by President Joe Biden last Tuesday, which explains Congress's explicit rejection of attempts to violating international law in Western Sahara, and further buries Trump's tweet, which was falsely elevated to formal recognition by Morocco, by which he allegedly recognized Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara.
The text of the law highlights the insistence of the United States Congress as well as the United Nations in refusing to recognize Morocco's alleged sovereignty over Western Sahara , since assistance to Western Sahara was included in another paragraph of the law, specifically in the framework of the Middle East Partnership Initiative.The explanatory statement also orders Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to ''continue to support the political process led by the UN to achieve a just, lasting and mutually acceptable political solution (Morocco and the POLISARIO Front) in accordance with the relevant resolutions. of the UN Security Council.'' For his part, the president of the Senate, Patrick Leahy, emphasized that the political status of Western Sahara is an issue that must be resolved by the parties in conflict, not the US Congress.
The reality of Washington's support for Rabat on the issue of Western Sahara is totally different from what it seems. The position of the Senate constitutes a strong rejection of Morocco's intransigence , which is what prevents the resumption of the political process in order to reach a solution that guarantees the exercise of the inalienable right of the Saharawi people to self-determination and independence by virtue of their colonial domination by Morocco. Members of the US Congress sent a letter to the US president last Friday expressing concern about US policy towards the Western Sahara conflict and the arms deals that the Trump administration signed with Morocco in December 2020, adding that: " We are concerned that these weapons can be used offensively against the Saharawi people or that can facilitate the illegal occupation of the territory by Morocco".
As a reminder, last year, months after Trump's infamous tweet, Congress blocked the construction of the US consulate in the occupied Saharawi city of Dakhla as well as the sale of Reaper drones . Both decisions were promised by Trump to encourage normalization between Morocco and Israel, but so far, neither has materialized despite the fact that Morocco signed the Abraham Accords in December 2020. https://www.ecsaharaui.com/2022/03/presidente-del-senado-de-eeuu-confirma.html
Montuno
...como el Son...
The Moroccan Autonomy Plan for occupied Western Sahara is contrary to geopolitics and harms Spanish interests:
SATURDAY, MARCH 19, 2022
Jorge Alejandro Suarez.
ECS. Madrid. | From time to time we observe that some propose as a solution to the conflict in Western Sahara, accepting the autonomy plan proposed by Morocco. This was supported by the so-called Baker Plan I and II, which foundered, both for political and legal reasons. Now, Pedro Sánchez, president of the Spanish government, says that he supports this solution.
Under a simplistic reading of the United Nations Security Council mandate that urges the parties to seek a realistic solution to the conflict. This does not mean accepting the solution of one of the parties, without any other argument than its demographic or political weight. A realistic solution implies taking into account various factors in the geopolitical complex, which is the Maghreb.
The idea of a “Moroccan-style” autonomy regime:
For many years, the Moroccan government has proposed a regime of regional autonomy as the only alternative to get out of the conflict. It remains immovable and in a position of strength, with political support from France in the United Nations, rejects any idea or proposal other than that of a "Moroccan Sahara".
This is clearly indicated by one of the points on the so-called Moroccan Initiative for the autonomy of the Sahara: In response to this call from the international community, the Kingdom of Morocco has entered into a positive and constructive dynamic, committing itself to submitting an initiative for negotiation of a statute of autonomy for the Sahara region, within the framework of the sovereignty of the Kingdom and its national unity.
The resolutions of the United Nations where they clearly speak of the right of self-determination of the Saharawi people, such as the opinion of the International Court of Justice of 1975, have no value for Rabat, which insists on the integration of the Sahara - despite the fact that the occupation has been declared illegal – as the only way out, also leaving aside the commitments that arise from the Settlement Plan.
For Morocco, the right to self-determination has a wrong interpretation. The statute of autonomy, resulting from the negotiations, will be submitted to a consultation by means of a referendum of the populations concerned, in accordance with the principle of self-determination and the provisions of the Charter of the United Nations.
It is known that the principle of self-determination is very different, speaking colloquial language, it is the right of a people to choose their own destiny, including forming an independent state. Or as Dr. Carlos Ruiz Miguel says, the sovereignty of the territory belongs to the original population. Therefore, the Saharawis are the only repositories of the sovereignty of Western Sahara.
At the time, Secretary General Koffi Annan considered that the referendum on the Sahara would have a winner and a loser, reasoning that Morocco took into account. The loss of the “southern provinces” is politically unacceptable, for many reasons. First of all, the delicate balance of the Moroccan regime is closely related to the conflict.
This in the past ideologically justified the regime, as well as its abuses and political repression. Economically it would also have its impact, due to the issue of phosphate mining and fishing. Therefore, assuming the corresponding political cost, Morocco has opted for a policy of denying the Saharawi as an actor in the conflict and imposing its will unilaterally, seeking consensus in the international community.
Until now, no State has recognized the Moroccan annexation and the attempts to enforce it, has suffered severe setbacks, as in the ruling of the High Court of Justice of the European Union.
The Moroccan promises include a statute of autonomy, the creation of an autonomous region of the Sahara with its executive, parliament, judiciary, police forces, its own tax capacity in certain matters, competences in housing, culture, sports, economic promotion, infrastructure. The Moroccan State remains responsible for national defense, substantive legislation, foreign relations, attributes of State sovereignty (national anthem, flag, currency, etc).
The Moroccan Initiative proposes a consultation via referendum within the framework of a series of negotiations with the "populations" of the territory. In this framework, it speaks of the creation of a transition council responsible for repatriation (it does not mention the term Saharawi or refugee at all). , demobilization and disarmament of “armed elements”.
The Moroccan autonomy plan contrary to geopolitics.
International doctrine, as well as jurisprudence, are clear regarding the concept of “self-determination”. The Settlement Plan of 1991, the rulings of the International Court of Justice, the High Court of Justice of the EU, the opinion of the Legal Adviser of the United Nations of 2002, United Nations resolutions are forceful in relation to the conflict.
Therefore, the idea that Morocco wants to impose is incompatible with international law. But there are other circumstances that are unacceptable for the actors that are part of the conflict. In the first place, for the Saharawi Republic, recognized by more than fifty nations and the African Union. And on the other hand, by Algeria and Mauritania, and also to a lesser extent by Spain.
It is known that Morocco has a conflictive relationship with its neighbors. Historically, the idea of the so-called "Greater Morocco" supports an objective of extending national borders over a series of spaces based on a distorted reading of history.
Behind this vision is the control of rich strategic resources and transforming the country into a first-rate power in the region, serving French interests.
France has been the main strategic political supporter of Rabat. The Sahara War would not have been possible without French military support. The United States supported it with media and advisers only in the 1980s. The invasion of the Sahara was feasible thanks to French equipment, even to this day, Moroccan naval development goes hand in hand with French support.
Moroccan expansionism benefits France.
At the time, supporting the Moroccan invasion of the former Spanish Sahara prevented Algeria from extending its political influence, not only in the Sahara, but also from consolidating itself in Mauritania. The Moroccan strengthening is observed with concern by its two neighbors. Algeria and Mauritania. The policy of containing the rise of Morocco as a regional power is to keep the Saharawi conflict alive.
Algeria, with its support for the Saharawi Republic, allows 100,000 Moroccan soldiers to continue clinging to the so-called "defensive walls", keeping them far from the Algerian-Moroccan border. The so-called liberated zones would be a kind of "buffer zone".
Algeria has perceived the rearmament of Morocco, which has resulted in the last ten years of commitment to the development of industrial capacities, strengthening naval and air power. The Algerian naval advantage is evident, with amphibious, submarine and surface combat capabilities. The fleet of Algerian submarines of Russian origin can block the departure of the Moroccan naval means.
Algeria's energy potential makes the country a major player. The experience in anti-terrorist war makes it a factor to consider. The Algerians maintain close ties with Russia and have been able to exploit, in the context of 9/11, a good relationship with the United States, in the context of the global war against terrorism.
The fall of the Libyan regime, the prevailing chaos, the advance of political Islamism and the strengthening of certain groups that operate in the Sahara Sahel strip, thanks to drug trafficking, human trafficking and the collapse of Libya, which left a valuable arsenal at the mercy for terrorists of various stripes, put the FLN regime in a tight spot.
The Algerian army has several fronts and maintaining the status quo in the Sahara is, as we said before, a valid strategy for Algeria. Keeping Morocco away is a priority. Especially in areas of high strategic value. The crisis over the sick and aging president Bouteflika, which generated massive protests about his possible re-election, we believe will not impact the conflict. The Algerian army has a significant share of power and for Algerian security, the containment of Morocco is key to the stability of Algeria and a guarantee to maintain its regional leadership.
Mauritania perceives the Moroccan threat, let us remember that the Saharawi Republic controls a narrow strip that separates the defensive walls of the southern end of the Mauritanian Saharawi border. This allows Moroccan troops to be kept away from the vital railway that connects the port of Nouadhibou and the iron mines. This railway is of strategic value, given that the Mauritanian economy relies largely on said mineral.
Control of the town of La Güera also allows the creation of a security zone for the city and port of Nouadhibou, the country's first-class economic center. The Gueguerat crisis affected Mauritanian security, which for the interests of Nouakchott, it is inadmissible that La Guera be occupied by Morocco. Within the framework of this political and military weakness of Mauritania vis-à-vis Morocco, we observe the rapprochement with China (interested in iron ore mining) which is already reflected in the military field, which few analysts have noticed, that Chinese support in the military field is significant, especially in naval matters. Something that should attract attention is the sale of an amphibious ship, which would allow small-scale operations to be carried out and an armored combat team to land anywhere on the Mauritanian coast. Moroccan naval strengthening alarms its neighbors. On the other hand, Mauritania tolerates the presence of critical sectors of the Polisario, in the strategy for the recovery of the occupied territory.
Mauritanian political leaders, the Saharawi Republic is a key factor for their own security. A Saharawi state that exercises control of the former territory of the Spanish Sahara would keep Morocco far from its borders. Mauritania compensates for its weakness, on the one hand with a positive neutrality towards the Saharawi Republic, and on the other, good ties with the former colonial power, France, which it supports in its fight against terrorism (which even put the viability of the State at risk). Mauritanian) and with Spain, through cooperation on fishing, illegal migration, terrorism, economic development.
This relationship with members of the EU has its counterweight, China. This country has made investments in infrastructure, increased political and economic relations, in addition to the military aspect.
Spain has had a policy of appeasement, sometimes harmful to the Spanish interests themselves. Especially in terms of migration, fight against terrorism, drug trafficking, fishing operations. The Spanish governments made the serious mistake of not enforcing the so-called Madrid Agreements in all their extremes, especially to maintain some control of the Fosbucraa mining company, one of the world's leading phosphate producers.
Spain's negotiating capacity was diminishing and has been permeable to pressure from Morocco. That is why, as a prevention mechanism towards expansionism towards Ceuta and Melilla, which Morocco claims as its own, within the framework of the aforementioned ideology of the "Greater Morocco", Spain remains on the sidelines.
There are important economic ties, which serve in a certain way as a guarantee to avoid major conflicts. One example is the Perejil islet incident. Morocco benefits from Spanish investments and from the ships that exploit its rich fishing grounds.
The status quo of the conflict, which makes the best of the Moroccan army stationed in Western Sahara, as a dissuasive mechanism and also within the framework of the Moroccanization program of said territory.
The conflict means that these forces are far away and not at the gates of Ceuta and Melilla. There are other interests, which would not look favorably on one of the banks of the so-called "waters" of the Strait of Gibraltar, being in the hands of a single state.
This policy of "divide et impera" means that there is no hegemonic actor in these waters and that it could be a factor that threatens the freedom of movement of certain central countries with interests in the Mediterranean (the United States in the first place and to a lesser extent the United Kingdom). We believe that Spain made a big error.
We also note that the Moroccan commitment to growing its naval forces is not correctly perceived, especially with the idea of acquiring the capacity to operate submarines. Spain must review its strategy on the "southern flank", especially its ties with Mauritania, Algeria and increasing its own presence in the Canary Islands.
We also consider it important to maintain ties with the Saharawis through humanitarian aid, create a Cervantes Institute in the refugee camps and indirectly support the survival of the Saharawi Republic. Spain must maintain options for situations of tension with Rabat.
In the hypothetical case that Morocco legitimizes its presence in the Sahara, it would emerge politically strengthened and this would encourage it to consolidate its power in the space that they consider their own. The pressure on Ceuta and Melilla would be unbearable, seeking through faits accomplis, the annexation of said territories.
This would be a geopolitical tragedy for Madrid. Likewise, the chapter is opened in relation to the Canary Islands and their maritime spaces, where there is a budding conflict. Mauritania would have a strengthened Morocco as a neighboring country and its orbit or influence would fall as a consequence.
This would exacerbate certain nationalist sentiments, in fear of being satelized. The clash with Algeria would be a logical consequence, since the old chapter of undefined borders would be opened, as a consequence of the Oasis War of 1963.
The competition between the two states would increase and a conflict of greater proportions would be a reality. And the Saharawis? Years of exile, as well as of political repression in the occupied zone, have exacerbated nationalist sentiments. After four decades of resisting, of war and misery, all this being thrown overboard, it could lead sectors of the Polisario as well as of the population not to accept the idea of a Moroccan Sahara and lead them to armed struggle, a situation that it can be exploited by terrorist groups operating in the area.
This is not a fantasy, an example was the case of the Tuareg separatist movement Azawad, whose rebellion was "taken over" by Salafist groups, armed and strengthened by the weapons that became available after the collapse of the Libyan regime.
The jihadist hordes put Mali on the ropes. Only international aid led by France prevented this country from becoming a new "caliphate". It seems that many forget that from the suburbs of large Moroccan cities, plagued by poverty and unemployment, thousands of young people left to fight under the extremist agenda of groups linked to al Qaeda or the sinister Islamic State.
The collapse of the latter and the defeat of the jihadist groups against the Assad regime opens up the possibility that thousands of experienced combatants will return to the Maghreb. Europe has felt the impact of the return of many former combatants. Let us remember that Algeria suffered from this phenomenon, when former combatants from Afghanistan joined the ranks of the Armed Islamic Group, unleashing a war that cost the country 200,000 dead.
The maintenance of the status quo in the Western Sahara conflict is not something innocent, it responds to the interests of the actors in conflict. Even for the Saharawi Republic, it allows it to control a faction of the disputed territory, which allows it to have territorial anchorage, something that legally allows it to justify its "statehood".
The problem is managing the escalation of tension that is due to domestic political agendas. In the Moroccan case, external conflicts were an excellent escape valve for internal tensions. The Sahara conflict was strengthened in the 70s, given the internal tensions that the Palace had with its Armed Forces and a social situation deteriorated by poverty and underdevelopment.
The war made it possible to unite public opinion, within the framework of nationalist exacerbation, and also to discipline political parties. Keeping the military forces away from the Palace has to do with those delicate internal balances.
It is worth noting that Morocco does not have a Joint Chiefs of Staff or Ministry of Defense, this reinforces the monarch's control over its armed forces, even the main arsenals are in the hands of the Gendarmerie. In the case of Algeria, through a third actor, the Saharawi Republic, it keeps its Moroccan rival away from its borders, which allows it to keep old border disputes frozen and erode or contain Rabat's hegemonic ambitions in the Maghreb.
Mauritania recognized the Saharawi Republic in 1984, its situation is vulnerable to conflict, given the cultural ties with the Saharawis. A regional conflict would have consequences for the internal stability of the country. At the time, the Sahara war brought the country to the brink of collapse and brought very strong tensions between the black population of the south and the Arabized populations of the north.
The effort of the Saharawis to keep the liberated zones safe – recognized by the US State Department in Obama's time – has an impact on the security of Mauritania's vulnerable northern border. Also, despite the Moroccans, the presence of the SADR in the liberated areas keeps the terrorist groups away from the area controlled by Morocco. Al Qaeda cells are known to have infiltrated defensive walls.
Spain, thanks to its relative stability, keeps the terrorist threat away from its vulnerable southern flank. It can also somehow control the drama of the refugees who try to cross the Mediterranean or the Atlantic towards the Canary Islands.
The security of Spain is the security of the southern flank of Europe. Therefore, the escalation of a crisis is something extremely delicate. Other actors are also interested in stability, an escalation would create problems for the area's lucrative fishing, oil and phosphate farms. Chinese military support to Mauritania is closely linked to guaranteeing iron ore mining. The growing presence of NATO in Africa is also linked to economic issues and the control of uncontrolled migration and terrorism.
Is maintaining the status quo the solution?:
Definitely not, it just keeps crises frozen, but not for much longer. This also wears down the actors in conflict and feeds radicalized positions. Sooner or later a crisis may break out with consequences that are difficult to ponder. The armed clashes along the defensive walls, after the Guerguerat crisis of 2020, may lead to an armed conflict with a regional impact.
That is why it is imperative, a realistic solution, under a concept where there are no losers, or rather that the parties have a political impact, but that they can be of a magnitude that they can withstand. So, a way out can be the partition of the territory between Morocco and the Saharawi Republic.
At the time it was proposed, and the Polisario leadership accepted it, while Rabat is betting on an all-or-nothing policy, seeking to wear down its enemy, but which only fuels tensions in the region.
The Rabat government is determined to see the reality, the existence of the Saharawi Republic. He entered the African Union with the idea of removing it from that entity, which has generated fractures, but has not made significant progress.
It is more in contradiction with the law. As we have been saying, joining the Union implies accepting the borders inherited from times of colonial domination, breaking with this mandate is opening the door to conflicts. Many consider that a Saharawi state would be a failed state.
It is worth remembering that the SADR has been a reality since 1976 and since 1991, it effectively exercises control over a fraction of the territory, where terrorist infiltration attempts have failed. The SADR is a viable entity and with few resources it has managed to maintain internal and institutional stability for decades, while many African countries have gone through dozens of coups and internal political conflicts in these forty years.
We believe that there is a scenario to come to fruition. The idea of partitioning the territory, where Morocco maintains its presence in the so-called "Useful Triangle", leaving the Río de Oro region in the effective hands of the SADR, Algeria must also be included in this agreement, facilitating access to the sea of the Tindouf region and Mauritania, can also benefit from cooperation programs.
Be that as it may, the solutions sought must take into account that the Saharawi Republic is a reality and whose existence is vital for the security and stability of the region. Considering its suppression is not only contrary to international law and a crime, it is not understanding the complex geopolitical framework of the Maghreb.
https://www.ecsaharaui.com/2022/03/e...i-para-el.html
