Doğu Akdeniz’deki enerji sahalarında Güney Kıbrıs Rum Yönetimi (GKRY) gaspı sürüyor. Sonbaharda Amerikan Exxon Mobil, Total, Shell, Eni, Qatar Gas, Noble Enerji, Kogas’ın sondaj faaliyetlerini başlatması planlanıyor. Adanın güneyindeki ruhsat sahalarını, Kıbrıs Türkü’nün haklarını gözardı ederek belirleyen ve adeta işgal parselleri oluşturan Rum yönetimi, son olarak, tek taraflı olarak sınırlandırdığı 7 numaralı sözde ruhsat sahası için uluslararası şirketlere davette bulunma kararı aldı. Bu karar, Türkiye’den büyük tepki gördü.

DIŞİŞLERİ İHLAL UYARISI YAPTI

FIRSAT VERİLMEYECEK

Türkiye’nin 2 Mart 2004 ve 12 Mart 2013 tarihli notalarla kıta sahanlığı dış sınırlarını Birleşmiş Milletler’e bildirdiği vurgulanan açıklamada, “Ülkemiz, hiçbir yabancı ülke, şirket veya geminin deniz yetki alanlarımızda izinsiz olarak hidrokarbon arama faaliyetlerinde bulunmasına, bundan önce olduğu gibi bundan sonra da hiçbir şekilde fırsat vermeyecektir” denildi.

KKTC SAHALARINDA SONDAJ BAŞLIYOR

Gerek GKRY’ye gerekse ihaleye ilgi duyan ülke ve şirketlere uyarı niteliğindeki açıklamada, Türkiye’nin kıta sahanlığındaki bölgelerde sondaj faaliyetlerini yürüteceğine ilişkin planlamalar da açıkça ilan edildi. Dışişleri açıklamasında, “Ülkemiz, kıta sahanlığındaki hak ve menfaatlerini korumak için gerekli tedbirleri almaya ve her türlü girişim ile sondaj dahil faaliyetlerini yürütmeye devam edecektir. Nitekim önümüzdeki yakın dönemde Doğu Akdeniz’deki kıta sahanlığımızda ve ayrıca KKTC’nin Türk Petrollerine verdiği ruhsat sahalarında sondaj faaliyetlerinin yapılması planlanmaktadır” ifadeleri kullanıldı.

DAHA ÖNCE İTALYAN ENİ’Yİ PÜSKÜRTTÜK

Doğu Akdeniz’deki işgale karşı uzunca bir süredir teyakkuzda bulunan Türkiye, özellikle sonbahardaki girişimlere yönelik de tedbirlerini alıyor. Bu yıl içinde Karpaz güneyinde bulunan GKRY’nin sözde 3 numaralı ruhsat sahasında sondaj faaliyetine başlamak için gelen İtalyan Eni, Türk Deniz Kuvvetleri savaş gemileri tarafından püskürtülmüş, bölgede Türkiye’den izin alınmaksızın sondaj faaliyetinde bulunamayacağı konusunda diplomatik uyarı görmüştü.

ASKERİ BÖLGE İLAN EDİLEBİLİR

Akdeniz’de rutin devriye faaliyetlerini icra eden Türk donanması olası oldubitti girişimlerine karşı teyakkuzda tutulurken, Türk kıta sahanlığında gerçekleştirilecek izinsiz herhangi bir faaliyete karşı Deniz Kuvvetleri tarafından uyarı ya da Türkiye tarafından, sorun çözülene kadar bölgenin askeri bölge ilan edilmesine varan ileri düzey tedbirler alınabileceği belirtiliyor.

Fatih Mersin açıklarında

Güney Kıbrıs Rum Kesimi, belirlediği sözde ruhsat sahaları için uzunca bir süredir AB gazeteleri üzerinden ihaleye çıkıyor. Cumhurbaşkanı Recep Tayyip Erdoğan ve Dışişleri Bakanı Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, gerekse Doğu Akdeniz’deki Türk askeri varlığı üzerinden GKRY’ye yönelik baskılar artmış durumda. Sonbaharda faaliyete başlaması beklenen Fatih sondaj gemisi de Mersin Limanı açıklarında bulunuyor. Gemi, derin deniz aramalarındaki kabiliyetiyle öne çıkıyor. Gerektiğinde 1 haftada hazırlanıp operasyona sokulabilecek imkan ve kabiliyette. Yetkililer, limanda demirlemiş de olsa günlük 165 bin dolar maliyeti olan kabiliyetin bir an önce görev başı yapması gerektiğine işaret ediyor. Türkiye, Barbaros sismik arama gemisi ile GKRY’nin ruhsat sahası ilan ettiği alanlar da dahil Akdeniz ve Karadeniz’de geniş araştırmalar yapmıştı. İngiliz ve İsrail Hava Kuvvetleri’nin dönem dönem tacizleri eşliğinde olsa dahi ısrarla gerçekleştirilen bu aramalardan elde edilen veriler TPAO’ya sunuldu. 3 yıl geçmesine karşın henüz TPAO’dan ruhsat sahalarına ilişkin bir rapor yayınlanmadı.

Yeni Şafak

7. 

President Donald J. Trump Is Protecting the United States from Terrorism

In-Depth Coverage

October 4, 2018

When it comes to terrorism, we will do whatever is necessary to protect our Nation.

President Donald J. Trump

THE PATH TO VICTORY: President Donald J. Trump is releasing a new National Strategy for Counterterrorism that will protect American citizens and interests at home and abroad.

• Today, President Trump is releasing his National Strategy for Counterterrorism, the United States’ first robust and fully-articulated strategy on counterterrorism since 2011.
• The Administration is outlining a new approach to counter and prevent the evolving terrorist threat, making it clear that we will take all steps necessary to keep our country safe.
• President Trump’s National Strategy for Counterterrorism focuses on:
  • Pursuing terrorists to their source;
  • Isolating terrorists from their sources of support;
  • Modernizing and integrating the United States’ counterterrorism tools;
  • Protecting American infrastructure and enhancing resilience;
  • Countering terrorist radicalization and recruitment; and
  • Strengthening the counterterrorism abilities of our international partners.

A NEW APPROACH:

The new strategy builds on lessons learned from past counterterrorism efforts and offers a new path toward strengthening the security of Americans.

• The new strategy focuses the United States on countering all terrorists with the intent and ability to harm our country.
• The strategy emphasizes the use of all of America’s tools to prevent and counter terrorism, strengthening military approaches while delivering a new emphasis on non-military capabilities.
  • Many United States Government agencies have important roles to play, including our law enforcement, diplomatic, and treasury officials.
• The strategy places America first, emphasizing strong borders, strengthening security at points of entry, protecting critical infrastructure, and facilitating preparedness.
• However, America First does not mean America alone.  The new strategy commits us to expand our partnerships at home and abroad to encourage partners’ assistance in counterterrorism activities.
  • This includes working with our North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Allies and partners.

DEFEATING TERROR:

Thanks to President Trump’s leadership, the United States has accelerated efforts to defeat terrorists and protect the United States from global threats.

• Under President Trump, the United States and global partners have decimated ISIS and pushed the group to the brink of extinction in Iraq and Syria.
  • Nearly all of the territory previously held by ISIS has been recaptured.
  • More than 7.5 million people have been freed from the group’s oppressive rule.
• At President Trump’s urging, NATO members agreed to strengthen the alliance’s counterterrorism actions and capabilities.
• In December 2017, President Trump issued a new “National Security Strategy“ that focused, in part, on combatting terrorism.

– ΑΚΟΛΟΥΘΕΙ ΠΑΡΑΚΑΤΩ ΕΝΑ “ΣΟΚΙΝ”… ΑΝΕΚΔΟΤΟ:

• Η ελληνική “ΕΘΝΙΚΗ ΣΤΡΑΤΗΓΙΚΗ ΑΣΦΑΛΕΙΑΣ” πότε θα δημοσιευτεί; 
• H ελληνική έστω “ΕΘΝΙΚΗ ΑΝΤΙΤΡΟΜΟΚΡΑΤΙΚΗ ΣΤΡΑΤΗΓΙΚΗ ΑΣΦΑΛΕΙΑΣ”, πότε;

– Και τώρα πάμε όλοι μαζί! “Αχαχαχαχαχαχαχαχαχαχαχαχα”! And… once again! Αχαχαχαχαχαχαχαχαχαχαχαχα!..

8. “Ανοίξτε” κάποιοι τα μάτια σας!..

U.S. Charges Russian GRU Officers with International Hacking and Related Influence and Disinformation (Παραπληροφόρηση) Operations

October 4, 2018

Conspirators Included a Russian Intelligence “Close Access” Hacking Team that Traveled Abroad to Compromise Computer Networks Used by Anti-Doping and Sporting Officials and Organizations Investigating Russia’s Use of Chemical Weapons

A grand jury in the Western District of Pennsylvania has indicted seven defendants, all officers in the Russian Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU), a military intelligence agency of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, for computer hacking, wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and money laundering.

According to the indictment, beginning in or around December 2014 and continuing until at least May 2018, the conspiracy conducted persistent and sophisticated computer intrusions affecting U.S. persons, corporate entities, international organizations, and their respective employees located around the world, based on their strategic interest to the Russian government.

Among the goals of the conspiracy was to publicize stolen information as part of an influence and disinformation campaign designed to undermine, retaliate against, and otherwise delegitimize the efforts of international anti-doping organizations and officials who had publicly exposed a Russian state-sponsored athlete doping program and to damage the reputations of athletes around the world by falsely claiming that such athletes were using banned or performance-enhancing drugs.

The charges were announced at a press conference by Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers, United States Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania Scott W. Brady, FBI Deputy Assistant Director for Cyber Division, Eric Welling, and Director General Mark Flynn for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

“State-sponsored hacking and disinformation campaigns pose serious threats to our security and to our open society, but the Department of Justice is defending against them,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said. “Today we are indicting seven GRU officers for multiple felonies each, including the use of hacking to spread the personal information of hundreds of anti-doping officials and athletes as part of an effort to distract from Russia’s state-sponsored doping program. The defendants in this case allegedly targeted multiple Americans and American entities for hacking, from our national anti-doping agency to the Westinghouse Electric Company near Pittsburgh. We are determined to achieve justice in these cases and we will continue to protect the American people from hackers and disinformation.”

“The investigation leading to the indictments announced t (link is external)oday is the FBI at its best,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “The actions of these seven hackers, all working as officials for the Russian government, were criminal, retaliatory, and damaging to innocent victims and the United States’ economy, as well as to world organizations. Their actions extended beyond borders, but so did the FBI’s investigation. We worked closely with our international partners to identify the actors and disrupt their criminal campaign – and today, we are sending this message: The FBI will not permit any government, group, or individual to threaten our people, our country, or our partners. We will work tirelessly to find them, stop them, and bring them to justice.”

“We want the hundreds of victims of these Russian hackers to know that we will do everything we can to hold these criminals accountable for their crimes,” said U.S. Attorney Brady. State actors who target U.S. citizens and companies are no different than any other common criminal: they will be investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

The defendants, all Russian nationals and residents, are Aleksei Sergeyevich Morenets, 41, Evgenii Mikhaylovich, Serebriakov, 37, Ivan Sergeyevich Yermakov, 32, Artem Andreyevich Malyshev, 30, and Dmitriy Sergeyevich Badin, 27, who were each assigned to Military Unit 26165, and Oleg Mikhaylovich Sotnikov, 46, and Alexey Valerevich Minin, 46, who were also GRU officers.

The indictment alleges that defendants Yermakov, Malyshev, Badin, and unidentified conspirators, often using fictitious personas and proxy servers, researched victims, sent spearphishing emails, and compiled, used, and monitored malware command and control servers.

When the conspirators’ remote hacking efforts failed to capture log-in credentials, or if the accounts that were successfully compromised did not have the necessary access privileges for the sought-after information, teams of GRU technical intelligence officers, including Morenets, Serebriakov, Sotnikov, and Minin, traveled to locations around the world where targets were physically located. Using specialized equipment, and with the remote support of conspirators in Russia, including Yermakov, these close access teams hacked computer networks used by victim organizations or their personnel through Wi-Fi connections, including hotel Wi-Fi networks. After a successful hacking operation, the close access team transferred such access to conspirators in Russia for exploitation.

Among other instances, the indictment alleges that following a series of high-profile independent investigations starting in 2015, which publicly exposed Russia’s systematic state-sponsored subversion of the drug testing processes prior to, during, and subsequent to the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics (according to one report, known as the “McLaren Report”), the conspirators began targeting systems used by international anti-doping organizations and officials. After compromising those systems, the defendants stole credentials, medical records, and other data, including information regarding therapeutic use exemptions (TUEs), which allow athletes to use otherwise prohibited substances.

Using social media accounts and other infrastructure acquired and maintained by GRU Unit 74455 in Russia, the conspiracy thereafter publicly released selected items of stolen information, in many cases in a manner that did not accurately reflect their original form, under the false auspices of a hacktivist group calling itself the “Fancy Bears’ Hack Team.” As part of its influence and disinformation efforts, the Fancy Bears’ Hack Team engaged in a concerted effort to draw media attention to the leaks through a proactive outreach campaign. The conspirators exchanged e-mails and private messages with approximately 186 reporters in an apparent attempt to amplify the exposure and effect of their message.

Each defendant is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit computer fraud and abuse, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, one count each of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering, both of which carry a maximum sentence of 20 years. Defendants Morenets, Serebriakov, Yermakov, Malyshev, and Badin are each also charged with two counts of aggravated identity theft, which carries a consecutive sentence of two years in prison. Defendant Yermakov is also charged with five counts of wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years.

Defendants Yermakov, Malyshev, and Badin are also charged defendants in federal indictment number CR 18-215 in the District of Columbia, and accused of conspiring to gain unauthorized access into the computers of U.S. persons and entities involved in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, steal documents from those computers, and stage releases of the stolen documents to interfere with the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

According to the indictment:

Context of the Hacking and Related Influence and Disinformation Efforts

In July 2016, the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) Independent Person Report (the “First McLaren Report”) was released, describing Russia’s systematic state-sponsored subversion of the drug testing process prior to, during, and subsequent to the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics. This investigation had the support of advocates for clean sports, including the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES, Canada’s anti-doping agency). Eventually, in some instances only after arbitration rulings by the International Court of Arbitration for Sport (TAS/CAS), approximately 111 Russian athletes were excluded from the 2016 Summer Olympic Games, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, by a number of international athletics federations, including track-and-field’s International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) further imposed a blanket ban of Russian athletes from the 2016 Paralympic Games, which were also held in Rio.

Intrusion Activities in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Days after the release of the First McLaren Report and the International Olympic Committee’s and IPC’s subsequent decisions regarding the exclusion of Russian athletes, the conspirators prepared to hack into the networks of WADA, the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), and TAS/CAS. The conspirators, including specifically defendants Yermakov and Malyshev, procured spoofed domains (which mimicked legitimate WADA and TAS/CAS domains) and other infrastructure, probed such entities’ networks, and spearphished WADA and USADA employees. Although Yermakov and Malyshev are both alleged to have prepared to send spearphishing e-mails to TAS/CAS, the indictment does not allege that organization was compromised.

Likely as a result of the conspirators’ failure to capture necessary log-in credentials, or because those victim accounts that were successfully compromised did not have the necessary access privileges for the sought-after information, defendants Morenets and Serebriakov, in at least one instance with the remote support of Yermakov, deployed to Rio to conduct hacking operations targeting and maintaining persistent access to Wi-Fi networks used by anti-doping officials. As a result of these efforts, in August 2016, the conspirators captured that IOC official’s credentials and thereafter used them, and another set of credentials belonging to the same official to gain unauthorized access to an account in WADA’s ADAMS database and medical and anti-doping related information contained therein. (The broader ADAMS database was not compromised in the intrusion.)

Also in 2016, a senior USADA anti-doping official traveled to Rio de Janeiro for the Olympics and Paralympic games. While there, the USADA official used Wi-Fi at the hotel and other Wi-Fi access points in Rio to remotely access USADA’s computer systems and conduct official business. While the USADA official was in Rio, conspirators successfully compromised the credentials for his or her USADA email account, which included summaries of athlete test results and prescribed medications.

Intrusion Activities in Lausanne, Switzerland

In mid-September 2016, WADA hosted an anti-doping conference in Lausanne, Switzerland. On September 18, 2016, defendants Morenets and Serebriakov traveled to Lausanne with equipment used in close access Wi-Fi compromises. On or about September 19, 2016, Morenets and Serebriakov compromised the Wi-Fi network of a hotel hosting the conference and leveraged that access to compromise the laptop and credentials of a senior CCES official staying at the hotel. Other conspirators thereafter used the stolen credentials to compromise CCES’s networks in Canada, using a tool used to extract hashed passwords, the metadata of which indicated it was compiled by Badin.

Intrusion Targeting Anti-Doping Officials at Sporting Federations

In December 2016 and January 2017, conspirators successfully compromised the networks of IAAF and the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (“FIFA”) and targeted computers and accounts used by each organization’s top anti-doping official. Among the data stolen from such officials were keylogs, file directories, anti-doping policies and strategies, lab results, medical reports, contracts with doctors and medical testing labs, information about medical testing procedures, and TUEs.

Related GRU Influence and Disinformation Operations

On September 12, 2016, shortly after the compromise of the IOC official’s ADAMS credentials, but before the compromise of USADA’s and CCES’s networks, conspirators claiming to be the hacktivist group Fancy Bears’ Hack Team used online accounts and other infrastructure procured and managed by Unit 74455, as well as the website fancybears.net, to publicly release TUEs, other medical information, and emails stolen from anti-doping officials at WADA, USADA, CCES, IAAF, FIFA, and approximately 35 other anti-doping agencies or sporting organizations. In some instances, the WADA documents were modified from their original form. Ultimately, the Fancy Bears’ Hack Team released stolen information that included private or medical information of approximately 250 athletes from almost 30 countries.

The conspirators’ release of the stolen information was, in some instances, accompanied by posts and other communications that parroted or supported themes that the Russian government had used in its official narrative regarding the anti-doping agencies’ investigative findings. From 2016 through 2018, the conspirators engaged in a proactive outreach campaign, using Twitter and e-mail to communicate with approximately 186 reporters about the stolen information. After articles were published, conspirators used the Fancy Bears’ Hack Team social media accounts to draw attention to the articles in an attempt to amplify the exposure and effect of their message.

Other Targets of the Conspiracy

The conspiracy is also alleged to have targeted other entities in the Western District of Pennsylvania and abroad that were of interest to the Russian government. For example, as early as November 20, 2014, Yermakov performed reconnaissance of Westinghouse Electric Company’s (WEC) networks and personnel. In the following months, Yermakov and conspirators created a fake WEC domain and sent spearphishing emails to WEC employees’ work and personal email accounts, which were designed to harvest the employees’ log-in credentials.

More recently, in April 2018, Morenets, Serebriakov, Sotnikov, and Minin, all using diplomatic passports, traveled to The Hague in the Netherlands in furtherance of another close access operation targeting the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) computer networks through Wi-Fi connections. All four GRU officers intended to travel thereafter to Spiez, Switzerland, to target the Spiez Swiss Chemical Laboratory, an accredited laboratory of the OPCW which was analyzing military chemical agents, including the chemical agent that the United Kingdom authorities connected to the poisoning of a former GRU officer in that country. However, Morenets, Serebriakov, Sotnikov, and Minin were disrupted during their OPCW hacking operation by the Militaire Inlichtingen- en Veiligheidsdienst (MIVD), the Dutch defense intelligence service. As part of this disruption, Morenet’s and Serebriakov’s abandoned the Wi-Fi compromise equipment, which they had placed in the trunk of a rental car parked adjacent to the OPCW property. Data obtained from at least one item of this equipment confirmed its operational use at multiple locations around the world, including connections to the Wi-Fi network of the CCES official’s hotel in Switzerland (the dates the conspirators conducted the Wi-Fi compromise of the senior CCES official’s laptop at the same hotel), and at another hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in December 2017.

***

In connection with the unsealing of the indictment, and in an effort to limit further exposure of the private lives of victim athletes, the FBI seized the fancybears.net and fancybears.org domains pursuant to court orders issued on October 3, 2018, in the Western District of Pennsylvania.

The charges contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. Moreover, the maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentence of a defendant will be determined by the assigned judge.

The FBI, led by the Pittsburgh and Philadelphia Field Offices, conducted the investigation that resulted in charges announced today. The FBI’s investigation was assisted by a parallel, independent Royal Canadian Mounted Police investigation. This case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania and the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section. The Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs provided assistance throughout this investigation, as did the MIVD, the Government of the Netherlands, Switzerland’s Office of the Attorney General, the U.K.’s National Security and Intelligence Agencies, and many of the FBI’s Legal Attachés and other foreign authorities around the world.

Topic(s): National Security

Component(s): National Security Division (NSD)

Press Release Number: 18 – 1296

9.

Οι… παρθένες οι Κινέζοι!..

US Vice President: China ‘Meddling in America’s Democracy’

In-Depth Coverage

By Steve Herman

October 04, 2018

The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump is accusing China of trying to undermine it by targeting the American political system.

“China wants a different American president,” said Vice President Mike Pence in a speech on Thursday. He accused Beijing of “meddling in America’s democracy” by employing power in more proactive and coercive ways.

The remarks come a week after Trump accused the Chinese government of attempting to interfere in the U.S. midterm elections, to be held next month, and the president said details would be released by Pence in his speech.

Pence accused the Chinese Communist Party of “rewarding or coercing American businesses, movie studios, universities, think tanks, scholars, journalists, and local, state, and federal officials. Worst of all, China has initiated an unprecedented effort to influence American public opinion, the 2018 elections, and the environment leading into the 2020 presidential elections.”

The vice president said a senior career member of the U.S. intelligence community recently told him, “what the Russians are doing pales in comparison to what the China is doing across this country.”

Trump, at the Hudson Institute in Washington, said he was citing information “some of which we’ve gleaned from intelligence assessments, some of which is publicly available.”

Speaking to reporters later in the day at the White House, National Security Advisor John Bolton said Pence’s remarks relied on “previously classified and unclassified information.”

Bolton said “much of what we know remains classified” and due to ongoing intelligence operations, as well as protecting sources and methods, more cannot be revealed at this time.

“I’ve never seen anything like the scope of the Chinese activities,” added Bolton. “It’s a very serious problem.”

Citing U.S. intelligence community reports, Pence claimed the Chinese are targeting state and local governments and officials in the United States in an attempt to exploit divisions between federal and local levels on policy.

According to Pence, the Chinese government circulated a sensitive “Propaganda and Censorship Notice” in June that stated Beijing must “strike accurately and carefully, splitting apart different domestic groups” in the United States.

To that end, Pence said “Beijing has mobilized covert actors, front groups, and propaganda outlets to shift Americans’ perception of Chinese policy.”

“The current administration is willing to call a spade a spade,” said Yun Sun, co-director of the East Asia program at the Stimson Center.

She said Pence’s speech contains a lot of facts and is comprehensive on issues where China seeks to challenge or undermine American national interests. But she added that the evidence put forward by the Trump administration, such as a Des Moines newspaper supplement published by the Chinese and the tariffs targeting Trump’s voter base “might be a little thin to substantiate China’s interference in U.S. elections.”

Since Trump took office early last year, his administration has escalated pressure on Beijing, most recently with more than $250 billion worth of tariffs on products for which the Chinese have retaliated in kind.

“And when it comes to influencing the midterms, you need only look at Beijing’s tariffs in response to ours,” said Pence in his speech. “They specifically targeted industries and states that would play an important role in the 2018 election. By one estimate, more than 80 percent of U.S. counties targeted by China voted for President Trump and I in 2016; now China wants to turn these voters against our administration.”

Short on specifics

Other analysts also say they wish there had been more specifics in Pence’s remarks.

“He was fairly cryptic,” said Rebeccah Heinrichs, a Hudson Institute senior fellow. “He made the point that the [Chinese] government doesn’t like what this administration is doing and he kind of left it there. I can deduce from that they’re doing something specifically to affect elections to harm Republicans.”

Trump signed an executive order last month authorizing sanctions against those found to be involved in election interference.

“I hope to see other efforts by the U.S. to deter China and to come up with real responses to try to actually stave off some of what the Chinese are doing,” Heinrichs told VOA.

Pence also said in his speech the Chinese are trying to project their military power farther than ever before, noting Chinese ships routinely patrolling around disputed islands administered by Japan (known as Senkaku in Japanese and Diaoyu in Chinese), and Beijing’s deployment of advanced anti-ship and anti-air missiles atop an archipelago of military bases constructed on artificial islands.

“China’s aggression was on display this week when a Chinese naval vessel came within 45 yards of the USS Decatur as it conducted freedom-of-navigation operations in the South China Sea, forcing our ship to quickly maneuver to avoid collision,” said Pence. “We will not be intimidated, and we will not stand down.”

Pence said Beijing is extending a lifeline “to the corrupt and incompetent Maduro regime in Venezuela,” pledging billions of dollars in loans that can be repaid with oil.

The Chinese, according to the vice president, are “also impacting some nations’ politics by providing direct support to parties and candidates who promise to accommodate China’s strategic objectives.”

Since last year, Pence noted, the Chinese Communist Party convinced three Latin American nations to sever ties with Taipei and recognize Beijing.

In remarks the government in Beijing likely will consider particularly provocative, Pence characterized these actions by China as threatening the stability of the Taiwan Strait and declared that Taiwan’s embrace of democracy in contrast to the one-party system on the mainland “shows a better path for all the Chinese people.”

VOA’s William Gallo contributed to this report.

10. Νομίζουμε πως απαιτείται μια απάντηση από τις ΙΕΔ!

10-04-18

Is the IDF Woefully Unprepared for War?

State Comptroller Yosef Shapira is weighing a probe of the IDF’s readiness for future military conflict amid an escalating spat that has reached the highest levels of Israel’s defense establishment.

According to Haaretz, Shapira has ordered the IDF to transfer a report it has compiled examining its readiness for war. After reviewing the document, Shapira will decide if he will launch a probe of his own.

The State Comptroller is legally mandated to open independent investigations at his discretion. He is also authorized to command state bodies to address shortcomings and to issue reports documenting the progress in treating issues previous reports had found.

The report comes amid a debate between IDF Ombudsman Gen. (res.) Yitzhak Brik regarding the IDF’s preparedness and readiness for war.

Brik has been releasing increasingly dire warnings about what he says is the military’s depleted state. Brik, who will soon resign after 10 years in office, has called on cabinet ministers, the subcommittee of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee and the IDF leadership to appoint a committee to investigate the readiness of the ground forces for war.

In his most recent report, Brik says that the army’s streamlining and efficiency restructuring have devastated the ground forces, detailing the lack of manpower and ammunition rife among the standing military.

It is impossible to hold the rope on both ends, Brik wrote. On the one hand, the tasks are increasing and on the other there is extensive cross-cutting of manpower.

Following the report, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot instructed IDF Comptroller Brig. Gen. (res.) Ilan Harari to conduct an examination of issues Brik raised.

The examination will fall within reviews conducted by the IDF Comptroller in cooperation with Maj. Gen. (res.) Avi Mizrahi and other senior reservists, with transparency and cooperation of all IDF units.

The IDF Chief of Staff says that the IDF’s combat readiness is high, yet considers it important to examine the claims raised in a professional and comprehensive manner, by the official auditing bodies, including the IDF.

The report’s initial findings, conclusions, and recommendations will be presented to Eizenkot for review within 45 days.

However, Brik sent a letter on Thursday to Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman contending that the panel was unable to properly probe the military.

In the missive, Brik alleged that “the IDF’s condition is worse than it was at the time of the Yom Kippur War” and accused Eizenkot of trying to prevent the panel’s establishment.

In my opinion, an internal panel led by IDF Comptroller Brig. Gen. (res.) Ilan Harari, which was appointed despite the chief of staff, does not have the ability to contain the severity and complexity of the deep flaws,” wrote Brick.

Courtesy of Israelnn.com

11. Οι Ισραηλινοί Επιστήμονες Ποτέ Δεν… Σταματούν Να… “Ψάχνονται”!..

10-04-18

NASA Signs Deal with Israel Space Agency for Lunar Mission

JTA – NASA has signed an agreement with the Israel Space Agency and the Israeli nonprofit SpaceIL to collaborate on the Jewish state’s unmanned moon mission slated to launch from Cape Canaveral next year.

The landing would culminate eight years of collaboration on the $88 million project. If it succeeds, Israel will become the the fourth country to reach Earth s rocky satellite. The spacecraft s journey to the moon will last about two months. The Israeli craft will be the smallest to land on the moon, weighing only 1,322 pounds.

Upon its landing, the spacecraft plans to take photos and video of the landing site while also measuring the moon s magnetic field as part of a Weizmann Institute scientific experiment.

According to the new agreement, which was announced on Wednesday, NASA will contribute a laser retroreflector array to aid with ground tracking and support to aid in mission communication. ISA and SpaceIL will share data with the U.S. space agency from the SpaceIL lunar magnetometer installed aboard the spacecraft.

In addition, NASA s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter will attempt to take scientific measurements of the SpaceIL lander as it lands on the moon.

I m thrilled to extend progress in commercial cooperation we ve made in low-Earth orbit to the lunar environment with this new agreement with the Israel Space Agency and SpaceIL, NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine said. Innovative partnerships like this are going to be essential as we go forward to the Moon and create new opportunities there.

In a Post on Facebook, SpaceIL CEO Ido Antebi said it was a great honor to collaborate with NASA and that he hoped that this upcoming mission would lead to more space missions and other technological challenges in the future.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

12. Έτσι, ακριβώς!..

Bolton: ‘Palestine’ is not a state

October 4, 2018

US National Security Adviser John Bolton speaks during a briefing at the White House in Washington, Oct. 3, 2018. (AP/Susan Walsh)

“It’s not a state now. It does not meet the customary international law test of statehood,” US National Security Adviser John Bolton stated.

By Batya Jerenberg, World Israel News

US National Security Adviser John Bolton put the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) official status into perspective at a Wednesday press briefing when he announced that the United States would no longer be a signatory party to the United Nations’ International Court of Justice (ICJ).

“The president has decided that the United States will withdraw from the optional protocol and dispute resolution to the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. This is in connection with a case brought by the so-called state of Palestine naming the United States as a defendant [in the ICJ], challenging our move of our embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem,” Bolton said.

White House reporters immediately jumped on the adjective, asking whether calling the Palestinian Authority (PA) a “so-called state” was “productive,” considering that President Donald Trump had said he was working towards a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Bolton’s answer was unequivocal.

“It’s not a state now. It does not meet the customary international law test of statehood,” he said. “It doesn’t control defined boundaries. It doesn’t fulfill the normal functions of government. There are a whole host of reasons why it’s not a state.”

“It could become a state, as the president said, but that requires diplomatic negotiations with Israel and others,” he added. “So calling it the ‘so-called state of Palestine’ defines exactly what it has been. [That’s] the position that the United States government has pursued uniformly since 1988, when the Palestinian Authority declared itself to be the State of Palestine.”

Bolton might have been referring to the fact that 137 countries have recognized the PA as a state since that date. He reiterated the US rejection of this position on a bipartisan level.

“We don’t recognize it as a state… We have consistently, across Democratic and Republican administrations, opposed the admission of ‘Palestine’ to the UN as a state because it’s not a state.”

Although the PA is only a “non-member observer state” at the UN, it was allowed to formally join the International Criminal Court in 2015. Since the court’s decisions are binding, the US, by leaving the protocol, blocked the Palestinian case.

Bolton added that the withdrawal was part of a general effort by the Trump administration to protect US sovereignty from the reach of the international court.

“We will commence a review of all international agreements that may still expose the United States to purported binding jurisdiction dispute resolution in the International Court of Justice,” he said. “The United States will not sit idly by as baseless politicized claims are brought against us.”

13. NATO Secretary General’s press conference following Defence Ministers’ meeting

• 04 Oct. 2018

NATO Defence Ministers concluded two days of talks in Brussels on Thursday (4 October 2018), focused on further adapting and strengthening the Alliance in response to an ΠΟΝΗΡΑ increasingly assertive Russia and continued instability in the South.

Burden-sharing was a topic of discussion at the Ministerial meeting. Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the Alliance is “making progress”, adding “this will be the fourth consecutive year of rising defence spending”. Now that all Allies have committed to national plans, the Secretary General said he expects the national plans “to show real increases in defence spending year on year, and a realistic path to 2% of GDP on defence.”

In their discussion on NATO’s strengthened deterrence and defence, Ministers addressed concerns about Russia’s pattern of behaviour and the future of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. Mr. Stoltenberg said that Russia’s new missile system “is destabilising” and poses “a serious risk to our security”. “We call on Russia to address our serious concerns”, he added.

Ministers were briefed about a foiled Russian military intelligence service cyber operation against the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in the Hague (the Netherlands). The Secretary General referred to “Russia’s indiscriminate campaign of cyber-attacks around the world” and said that “in response, NATO will continue to strengthen its defence and deterrence in the cyber domain”. Mr. Stoltenberg thanked several Allies for offering their cyber capabilities to NATO. These will make NATO “as strong in cyberspace as we are on land, at sea and in the air”, he said.

The discussion on deterrence and defence also touched on NATO’s response to instability on its southern borders, in particular the new training mission in Iraq and NATO’s continued support to partner countries to improve their defence and security capabilities.

Ministers were joined by EU High Representative Federica Mogherini and representatives from Finland and Sweden for a discussion on NATO-EU cooperation in the areas of cyber defence, military mobility, countering hybrid threats, and capacity building in the Middle East and North Africa.

• Jerusalem Post

14. Πώς το έπαθε η Κα Μέρκελ και επισκέφτηκε το Ισραήλ; Πράξεις όμως Κα Μέρκελ και όχι λόγια, όχι μόνον παχιά λόγια!.. 

Israel News

MERKEL IN JERUSALEM: IRAN MUST NOT HAVE NUCLEAR WEAPONS

Merkel stated that “the threat to Israel is greater due to what is happening in Syria now.”

BY TAMAR BEERI, TOVAH LAZAROFF

OCTOBER 4, 2018 

Merkel received honorary doctorate from the University of Haifa, October 4, 2018 (Reuters)

German Chancellor Angela Merkel vowed to prevent a nuclear Iran as she spoke with Haifa University students in Jerusalem on Thursday morning.

Israel and Germany “share the view that everything must be done to prevent Iran from getting nuclear weapons,” Merkel told the students during a question-and-answer session.

The threat to Israel from Iran has become stronger due to its presence in Syria, Merkel said, noting that Iranian troops had been close to the Golan Heights border with Israel.

“It was a good thing that Russia saw to it that a withdrawal took place,” she added.

The point of disagreement with Israel, she said, is the question of the 2015 Iranian deal with the six world powers, including the US and Germany, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

The question is whether the JCPOA “is the right way to prevent [Iran’s] nuclear armament, or is it too weak,” Merkel said.

Germany, like the European Union, holds that the deal is the best way to stave off a nuclear Iran, while Israel and the US believe that it strengthens the Tehran’s nuclear capacity. The Trump Administration has pulled out of the dealand would like countries like Germany to do the same.

Merkel said that that she and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have had ongoing discussions on the issue of the JCPOA.

The two leaders discussed Iran when they met later in the day.

Following a question about the Holocaust, Merkel stated, “we are at an important time because those who witnessed the Nazis are passing away.”

“We therefore have to fight to preserve this memory and need to be aware of how we preserve memory in a world where there are no longer witnesses to these crimes.”

Merkel said that Germany works to keep the memory of the Holocaust alive by teaching about it part of its educational curriculum, including visits to concentration camps.

On the issue of Israeli Arabs in Israeli society, she said, “it is essential to give those who are of Arab descent the understanding that they are part and parcel of the society.”

On the larger issue of gender equality in society, Merkel said that there were still many changes that needed to be made to gender roles and the structure of society in general.

“Equal rights can only become a reality if both genders accept it as the reality of the day,” Merkel said.

Professor Ron Robin, President of the University of Haifa, who sat on the stage at the Israel Museum together with Merkel to help moderate the conversation, assured her that his institution took gender equality seriously.

“Sixty-five percent of the students [in the University of Haifa] are women and the percentage is the same among Arab women. We are doing our share in creating leaders in Israel society,” he said.

Merkel asked him, “And how high is the percentage of members of the faculty who are women?”

Robin shifted in his seat and said, “we need to improve.”

At the start of the event, he awarded Merkel an honorary doctorate. “You have taken the mission of defending the liberal world order upon yourself and have expressed your determination both in words and actions,” said Robin. He added that the institution “shares this determination” with Merkel.

“In accepting this honorary degree from our hands, we see your acceptance of us as your partners in the critical mission to support our democracy at a particularly challenging time,” Robin continued. “We thank you for the honor you have given us as you are here with us.”