The Biden administration was caught off-guard by the decision on Election Day, The Times of Israel cited a U.S. source. “Minister Gallant has been an important partner on all matters related to the defense of Israel. As close partners, we will continue to work collaboratively with Israel’s next minister of defense,” the NSC spokesperson told TOI.
Archiv: Nationale Sicherheitsräte / National Security Councils
US says Israel is complying with international law. ‚Complete nonsense’, experts say
„Your – your question presumes, at this very early hour, that it was a deliberate strike, that they knew exactly what they were hitting, that they were hitting aid workers and did it on purpose. And there’s no evidence of that,“ Kirby told the reporter.
„I would also remind you, sir, that we continue to look at incidents as they occur. The State Department has a process in place. And to date, as you and I are speaking, they have not found any incidents where the Israelis have violated international humanitarian law.“
Readout of President Biden’s Call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel
(6 hours ago)
President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. spoke today with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel to welcome the deal for the release of at least 50 hostages held by Hamas. The two leaders discussed the pause in the fighting, which will allow for surging in much needed humanitarian assistance into Gaza. The Prime Minister thanked the President for his tireless efforts, and those of his team, to help broker this deal.
Gaza: Israel and Hamas Truce, Hostage Release Delayed The delay is a hammer blow to families desperate to see their loved ones return home, and to two million-plus Gazans praying for an end to 47 days of war and deprivation.
In surprise delay, top Netanyahu aide says hostage release ‘not before Friday’
National Security Council chairman Tzachi Hanegbi circulated a statement that said the negotiations for the hostages “are constantly progressing” and “the release will begin according to the original agreement between the parties, and not before Friday.”
An Israeli source also said the four-day lull in fighting, per the deal, would be on hold and that Israeli military operations in Gaza would continue as long as the agreement is not finalized, Haaretz reported.
Hanegbi sits with protesters in front of his home who urge him to obey High Court
The Tuesday night protest in the Jerusalem suburb of Mevaseret Zion was made up largely of former defense officials, including senior members of the National Security Council, which Hanegbi now leads.
While protests outside the homes of lawmakers have become the norm over the past year, the decision to target Hanegbi, who is no longer a politician appeared relatively rare — as was his willingness to sit with those demonstrating against him.
Chile and the United States: Declassified Documents Relating to the Military Coup, September 11, 1973
(September 11, 1998)
Since the coup, however, few U.S. documents relating to Chile have been actually declassified- -until recently. Through Freedom of Information Act requests, and other avenues of declassification, the National Security Archive has been able to compile a collection of declassified records that shed light on events in Chile between 1970 and 1976.
These documents include:
– Cables written by U.S. Ambassador Edward Korry after Allende‘s election, detailing conversations with President Eduardo Frei on how to block the president-elect from being inaugurated. The cables contain detailed descriptions and opinions on the various political forces in Chile, including the Chilean military, the Christian Democrat Party, and the U.S. business community.
– CIA memoranda and reports on „Project FUBELT“–the codename for covert operations to promote a military coup and undermine Allende‘s government. The documents, including minutes of meetings between Henry Kissinger and CIA officials, CIA cables to its Santiago station, and summaries of covert action in 1970, provide a clear paper trail to the decisions and operations against Allende‘s government
– National Security Council strategy papers which record efforts to „destabilize“ Chile economically, and isolate Allende‘s government diplomatically, between 1970 and 1973.
– State Department and NSC memoranda and cables after the coup, providing evidence of human rights atrocities under the new military regime led by General Pinochet.
– FBI documents on Operation Condor–the state-sponsored terrorism of the Chilean secret police, DINA. The documents, including summaries of prison letters written by DINA agent Michael Townley, provide evidence on the carbombing assassination of Orlando Letelier and Ronni Moffitt in Washington D.C., and the murder of Chilean General Carlos Prats and his wife in Buenos Aires, among other operations.
These documents, and many thousands of other CIA, NSC, and Defense Department records that are still classified secret, remain relevant to ongoing human rights investigations in Chile, Spain and other countries, and unresolved acts of international terrorism conducted by the Chilean secret police. Eventually, international pressure, and concerted use of the U.S. laws on declassification will force more of the still-buried record into the public domain–providing evidence for future judicial, and historical accountability.
Obama-era veteran Kurt Campbell to lead Biden‘s Asia policy
(Jan 13, 2021)
Campbell, the top U.S. diplomat for Asia under Democratic President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, is considered an architect of their “pivot to Asia” strategy, a vaunted but so far still limited rebalancing of resources to the region.
Why Biden Skipping the Asean Summit Is a Mistake
The deliberate cherry picking of allies and partners is the brainchild, insiders tell me, of Biden’s key Asia policy czar, Kurt Campbell. It is likely to continue, as Campbell has pointed out in a discussion earlier this year at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Lukashenko orders that government develop „algorithm for use“ of Russian nuclear weapons
The self-proclaimed president of Belarus assigned the task of developing an algorithm for the use of nuclear weapons to Viktor Khrenin, Belarusian Minister of Defence; Viktor Gulevich, Chief of the General Staff of the Belarusian Armed Forces; and Ivan Tertel, Chairman of the Belarusian State Security Committee.
(…)
Both Russian and Belarusian officials have repeatedly emphasised that Belarus will not have the opportunity to control the nuclear weapons deployed on its territory; Russia will be the one to retain control.
Press Briefing by Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and NSC Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby
(23.06.2023)
Q Okay. And one more question on the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. There’s a little bit of confusion. I think President Zelenskyy is saying — or was — said yesterday that Russia is plotting a terror attack on the nuclear power plant. President Putin today is urging the International Atomic Energy Agency to ensure that Ukraine does not attack the power plant. What is the administration’s understanding on this? What’s your assessment? And are there anything that you’re doing in particular to that issue?
MR. KIRBY: We’re continuing to monitor it closely. We are able to monitor some radiation sensors that are around the plant. And thus far, we’ve detected no elevated levels of radioactivity.
Q Do you have any sense of who’s going to attack, if anyone is?
MR. KIRBY: Look, I’ve seen those reports. I’ve seen those comments. I just don’t have anything to confirm them or speak to the validity of them.
The only other thing I’d say, and we’ve said this before too, is that I think we should all be able to agree that a nuclear power plant is not a great site for military operations, one way or the other.
Washington refuses to back Kiev’s nuclear ‘terrorism’ claims
When asked to comment on Zelensky’s latest remarks during a press briefing in the White House on Friday, Kirby said at first that the US continued to “monitor some radiation sensors that are around the plant.” The official added that “thus far, we’ve detected no elevated levels of radioactivity.”
When pressed further by a reporter, the NSC spokesman clarified that while he had “seen those comments,” he did not “have anything to confirm them or speak to the validity of them.”
Commenting on Zelensky’s claim on Thursday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov described it as “yet another lie.”
Medvedev proposes to divide Ukraine to end the conflict
(May 26, 2023)
On the contrary, if the rest of an independent Ukraine joins the European Union or NATO, the conflict is likely to erupt again with the risk that it may turn into a full-scale third world war. . He added that a final scenario, temporarily acceptable to Russia, would witness the complete division of Ukraine between Russia and the European Union, with the formation of a Ukrainian government in exile in Europe.
Russia‘s Medvedev Believes Ukraine May Disappear After Special Military Operation
(May 26, 2023)
In his Telegram channel, Medvedev wrote about different scenarios of how the ongoing conflict may end.
„Ukraine disappears after the completion of the special military operation in the process of its division between Russia and a number of EU states. A government of Ukraine is being formed in exile in one of the European countries,“ Medvedev said, adding that the conflict in this case will end with „reasonable guarantees of its non-renewal in the short term.
Before Virus Outbreak, a Cascade of Warnings Went Unheeded
(Published March 19, 2020 Updated Sept. 4, 2021)
That scenario, code-named “Crimson Contagion” and imagining an influenza pandemic, was simulated by the Trump administration’s Department of Health and Human Services in a series of exercises that ran from last January to August.
The simulation’s sobering results — contained in a draft report dated October 2019 that has not previously been reported — drove home just how underfunded, underprepared and uncoordinated the federal government would be for a life-or-death battle with a virus for which no treatment existed.
Scoop: U.S. Dem lawmakers tell Bibi judicial overhaul makes defending Israel hard
Jeffries and several other members of Congress told Netanyahu in Jerusalem that the judicial overhaul created a lot of negative “noise” about Israel in the U.S. and among their constituents, according to one of the sources who attended the meeting.
“They told Netanyahu it is very difficult for them to defend Israel under such circumstances, and their message was: help us help you,“ the source said.
U.S. delegation meets with Israel‘s PM during tense Memorial Day week
The group discussed “the need to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, the Abraham Accords, and the opportunities for expanding the circle of peace with additional countries.”
Netanyahu then thanked Jeffries and members of the delegation for their support for the State of Israel, emphasizing the important relationship between Israel and the United States.
Later this week, Netanyahu will meet with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
A year after its launch, details of submarine affair probe’s work yet to surface
(28 January 2023)
However, as of this time, the name of only one witness has been publicly announced — Amos Gilad, who was the director of the Defense Ministry’s Political-Military Affairs Bureau at the time of the purchase of the submarines.
The names of any other witnesses, if they exist, are unknown. Nor is it known how many times a week the commission meets, and which of the panel members are present when it does.
A year after its launch, details of the submarine affair probe’s work have yet to surface While the identities of the witnesses and the materials studied remain unknown, some believe staying under the radar may save panel from being torpedoed by Netanyahu
‚I‘m Comfortable With My Decisions, but Uncomfortable Talking About Them‘: Netanyahu’s Account in Submarine Affair Revealed
(Sep 25, 2022)
The most serious accusation by Ya’alon was that Netanyahu had concealed from him and the army brass the fact that he had given former German Chancellor Angela Merkel a green light to sell advanced submarines to Egypt. “This could reach the level of treason,” the former defense minister said. In his statement, details of which became known to Haaretz, Netanyahu reversed his opposition to the sale of the submarines in a one-to-one conversation with Merkel, but refused to say why.
‚I don’t know what Thyssenkrupp is‘: Netanyahu’s account in submarine affair revealed
(26 Sep 2022)
Angeblicher U-Boot-Deal mit Ägypten: Berlin beschwört gute Beziehungen zu Israel
(03.09.2012)
Auch dieser Export gilt als hochumstritten. Nach SPIEGEL-Informationen ist Kanzlerin Angela Merkel den Israelis weit entgegengekommen: Berlin übernimmt demnach nicht nur ein Drittel der Kosten, sondern stundet auch den israelischen Anteil bis 2015.
Der SPIEGEL hatte auch über eine atomare Bestückung der Boote berichtet.
Biden, Scholz to ‚get into the weeds‘ on Ukraine war, China concerns in Washington
The German leader arrives as United States is sounding out close allies about the possibility of imposing sanctions on China if Beijing provides military support to Russia for its war in Ukraine, according to four U.S. officials and other sources.
OPEC‘s Slap in the Face Shows Biden Critics Were Right About Meeting With Murderous Saudi Prince
President Joe Biden has a lot of reasons to be furious with his national security team who, against his better judgment, systematically pressured him for 18 months to do an about-face on Saudi Arabia.
The White House has reportedly been in a state of „spasm and panic“ since Wednesday, when it became clear that several of the U.S.‘s Persian Gulf partners, led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, were set to commit what the White House considered „a hostile act“: an extensive cut in oil production coordinated with Russia‘s Vladimir Putin, which will send oil prices soaring and very likely harm Democrats in the U.S. midterm elections in November.
Russia seeks to annex Ukraine’s east, south later this year, U.S. says
“First, these proxy officials will arrange sham referenda on joining Russia. Then, Russia will use those sham referenda as a basis to try to claim annexation of sovereign Ukrainian territory,” Kirby told reporters during Tuesday’s White House press briefing. Kirby added that the referendums “will take place later this year, possibly in conjunction with Russia’s regional elections.”
How Netanyahu Silenced Israel’s Spies and Soldiers From Dissenting on Annexation
In the coming months no less than five senior members of the security establishment face replacement.
They are: Yossi Cohen, head of Mossad (Israel’s foreign espionage agency); Nadav Argaman, head of the Shin Bet, (domestic security service); Major-General Tamir Hayman, chief of Military Intelligence, and its Research Directorate director, Brigadier-General Dror Shalom; and finally, Meir Ben Shabat, head of the National Security Council.
Johnson says declassified Rice email shows Obama officials ‚sabotaging the incoming administration‘
According to the email, then-FBI Director James Comey suggested to President Barack Obama in a Jan. 5, 2017 meeting that the National Security Council (NSC) might not want to pass „sensitive information related to Russia“ to Flynn, then Rice‘s designated successor.
The note was fully declassified by Acting Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell and transmitted to the Justice Department. Fox News obtained a copy Tuesday from Johnson‘s office, which had sought access to the document.
Israel: Höchstgericht verbietet Überwachung ohne Gesetz
Schin Bet hatte nach Beginn der Coronavirus-Krise Überwachungstechnologie eingesetzt, die sonst zur Terrorbekämpfung dient. Menschenrechtler hatten dagegen geklagt. Von offizieller Seite wurde die Maßnahme mit der Notwendigkeit gerechtfertigt, Leben zu retten.
Israeli Government Is Invading Our Privacy Under the Guise of Battling Coronavirus
Two weeks ago, the council had already discussed the possibility of a popular revolt and how the government could prevent an uprising against the authorities. Among other things, it considered how the state “could forestall dangers that could lead to widespread social unrest” that might spark protests against the government and state institutions.
It turns out that soldiers and officers from one of Military Intelligence’s classified intelligence gathering units gathered data and analyzed it for the task force that the National Security Council appointed for this purpose.
Column: Trump says Bolton is a disgruntled liar. Let him testify under oath so we can find out
“I’m with the Bush-Cheney team, and I’m here to stop the count.”
Those words were bellowed by John Bolton in a Tallahassee library in December of 2000, when he was part of a team of Republican lawyers trying to stop the Florida recount of votes cast in the Bush-Gore race. Until now, it was the most famous utterance President Trump’s former national security advisor had ever made.
Bolton book roils Washington as onetime allies turn on Trump’s former national security adviser
People close to Bolton said he wanted to testify, and a spokeswoman denied that he was behind the leak of the book, adding that the National Security Council has had a copy of it since Dec. 30.
Let‘s be clear – if there was evidence of imminent attacks on four embassies, the Administration would have said so at our Wednesday briefing. They didn‘t. So either Fox News gets higher level briefings than Congress… or…wait for it… there was no such imminent threat.
Pence says sharing intel with Congress could ‚compromise‘ sources
On NBC‘s „TODAY,“ Pence told Savannah Guthrie that the administration could not provide Congress with some of the „most compelling“ intelligence behind the administration‘s decision to kill Soleimani because doing so „could compromise sources and methods.“
As Mideast Tensions Flare, Trump Finds Solace in New Adviser
(06.01.2019)
O’Brien was celebrating the holidays in Pasadena, California, more than two thousand miles from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. Other key aides including Secretary of State Michael Pompeo and Acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney consulted with the president remotely, but a government jet was dispatched to fetch O’Brien and bring him to Palm Beach for the strike on Qassam Soleimani.
How Trump decided to kill a top Iranian general
(03.01.2019)
Army Gen. Mark A. Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in a meeting with reporters Friday that Soleimani was killed after U.S. officials recently became aware of intelligence that showed the “size, scale, scope” of what he was planning, which led them to conclude that there was a greater risk in not taking action than in doing so.
Pres. Trump, advisers face mounting pressure to justify Soleimani attack intel
President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that no lives were lost after Iran fired ballistic missiles at two Iraqi bases housing U.S. and coalition forces overnight. Trump said the U.S. would add new sanctions on Iran, but seemed to seek de-escalation. Meanwhile, Trump and his advisers are facing more pressure to provide justification for the airstrike that assassinated Iranian Gen. Soleimani. Senators and congressmembers found a Wednesday intelligence briefing to be wholly insufficient.
The Beltway‘s ‚Whistleblower‘ Furor Obsesses Over One Name
(30.10.2019)
Federal documents reveal that the 33-year-old Ciaramella, a registered Democrat held over from the Obama White House, previously worked with former Vice President Joe Biden and former CIA Director John Brennan, a vocal critic of Trump who helped initiate the Russia “collusion” investigation of the Trump campaign during the 2016 election.
Alleged Identity Of Whistleblower Leaked; Whistleblower’s Lawyers Release Statement Threatening Journalists
Citing federal documents, Sperry reported that the whistleblower is allegedly a 33-year-old “registered Democrat held over from the Obama White House, previously worked with former Vice President Joe Biden and former CIA Director John Brennan, a vocal critic of Trump who helped initiate the Russia ‘collusion’ investigation of the Trump campaign during the 2016 election.” The whistleblower reportedly “left his National Security Council posting in the White House’s West Wing in mid-2017 amid concerns about negative leaks to the media” and “has since returned to CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia.”
Krieg um Nordsyrien (IV)
Darüber hinaus gelte es, den Bundessicherheitsrat systematisch zu nutzen und ihn mit einem „angemessenen professionellen Unterbau“ zu versehen. Damit schließt sich Ischinger, ohne den Begriff zu erwähnen, der Forderung nach Schaffung eines deutschen Nationalen Sicherheitsrats an