Subverting Scandinavia: A Geopolitics of Neighboring Nations
A Geopolitics of Neighboring Nations
[Image: by ValoricFire cropped from Wikipedia. The cover of Carroll Quigley’s “Tragedy and Hope”.]
Publication date: 2022-05-17
Update 2022-05-18: Added a reference to The Duran discussion (Christoforou, Mercouris, Lira) which examines the Swedish and Finnish applications to join NATO. Also, Eisenhower’s final speech.
Update 2022-05-19: Added The Grayzone interview with Fergie Chambers and Russel Bentley.
Update 2022-05-20: Added Richard Medhurst’s interview with Scott Ritter.
Update 2022-05-25: A change of culture sections. The 1812 Overture is moved to the 80%: Remembrance article. In its place is Eve of Destruction. Each new location is more fitting.
Update 2022-05-29: A new source was added. Alex Christoforou updates details on the NATO applications by Sweden and Finland and their negotiations with Turkey over her objections.
Update 2022-06-01: The result of the Danish referendum is added.
Update 2022-06-03: The clownish concluding question has been answered.
Preface
A recent article by Kit Klarenberg published at The Grayzone provides a modern window into hidden actors and power relations among the UK and USA establishments. Leaked email records allow Kit to detail a conspiracy coordinated by elements of British military intelligence and financed by aristocratic donors to ensure a Brexit "Leave" vote, and a "hard Brexit" at that. To achieve this objective then British Prime Minister Theresa May needed to be removed from office and replaced with a more pliable leader. Key information was obtained by inserting a mole into the highest levels of the public service at 10 Downing St.
This anglophile alliance was detailed decades earlier in Carroll Quigley's two revelatory volumes "The Anglo-American Establishment" and "Tragedy and Hope". James Corbett presents an introduction to Carroll Quigley and these works, including audio excerpts from a lecture by G. Edward Griffin.
With this background of geopolitical power being disenfranchised from the populace, this article examines political changes in Scandinavia and how they may relate to a negotiated settlement of the conflict in Ukraine. A short summary of nuclear de-escalation during Cold War I is provided to highlight the serious danger of this conflict and the importance of its rapid resolution.
Chessboarding Ukraine
The opportunity for the current crisis in Ukraine was created during the USA's facilitation of the coup in Ukraine in 2014. Since then "football hooligan" Nazis have been integrated into Ukraine's armed forces and intelligence services. Ukraine's armed forces, the majority of which are not racist ultra-nationalists, have been trained by NATO countries.
The installed regime alarmed Russian speaking Ukrainian people when it began the process of removing Russian as an official national language. The 2014 live incineration of 50 people in the Trades Union building in Odessa, Ukraine, was an early sign of the tactics which would be used against elements of Ukrainian society who opposed the non-elected government.
[Image: a crop from a video frame by France24 during the incineration of protesters inside the Trades Union building in Odessa, Ukraine on 2014-05-02.]
The two "breakaway", self-declared republics of Lugansk and Donetsk have been attacked by Ukrainian national armed forces with Nazi aligned paramilitary units from 2014 onwards. These attacks by the installed regime on their own people is the beginning of the "war" in Ukraine.
Seeing the violence demonstrated by Ukraine in Odessa and then toward the two oblasts of dominantly Russian speakers, Crimean people non-violently ejected Ukrainian security forces from Crimea. Russia moved in to occupy the security vacuum and a referendum was held. 95% of votes were for Crimea to leave Ukraine and join Russia.
Unanimously adopted UN Security Council resolution 2202 was the basis for a political solution to the civil war. Ukraine's continuous refusal to engage in dialogue with the locally elected political leadership of the two former oblasts to add into Ukraine's constitution clauses granting limited autonomy to the regions scuttled any political solution. As successive governments in Ukraine were heavily under the influence of the USA it is reasonable to argue that these "american" influences were behind the 7 year long Ukrainian refusal to progress a political dialogue to resolve the conflict. More bluntly, the USA prohibited a political resolution of the conflict.
Russia's response to the early 2021 Ukrainian decree to reabsorb the Donbas and to retake Crimea by force was to position 2 Armies and 3 Airborne divisions on Ukraine's northeastern and eastern borders as a warning. This response, and the Russian President's calls to the USA President, produced the 2021 summer summit between Putin and Biden, respectively, from which little concrete results emerged. The pieces were in place, and Zbigniew Brzezinski's acolytes were ready to light the tinder. All that would be needed was to trigger Putin's desire to defend Russian speakers residing in former USSR republics who are being oppressed by their new governments.
The massive increase in shelling from Ukraine into the Donbas during February was an unmistakable signal of a much larger military operation about to begin. As Pepe Escobar outlines, apart from the impending slaughter of Russian speakers and citizens in the Donbas, Russia had two other major concerns in Ukraine:
the existing bioweapons research
the threat of nuclear rearmament
Consider the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis and add Russia training the Cuban military and doing bioweapons research in Cuba to give yourself a window into recent Russian thinking about this NATO instigated nightmare.
Expansion
In the 1980's the USA supplied chemical and conventional weapons to Iraq and sold conventional weapons to Iran to weaken both sides and enrich its murderous weapons industry during the Iraq-Iran war. In 1991, following the dissolution of the USSR, the USA waged a war against Iraq. The war was "sold" based on fabricated lies by a USA PR company trained daughter of a Kuwaiti diplomat; the "babies from incubators onto the cold hard ground" performance. During this "Gulf" war, the USA's political and military leadership declared that their Vietnam Syndrome was over; the USA could and perhaps should wage open war again.
Recent publication of notes of negotiation from the British National Archives document assurances given to Russia that, following a re-unification of Germany, no NATO expansion would occur beyond the Elbe river.
[Image: a screenshot of a screenshot. Red underlining is by the author.]
Weapons manufacturing is one of the USA's most profitable industries and despite Eisenhower's last address warning of the "undue influence, whether sought or unsought, of the military industrial complex" (MIC) that complex's political power was sufficient to motivate expansion (see Sources). NATO now has twice the membership of the time. Profits accrued over the last three decades have been immense.
The 1948 Treaty between Finland and Russia encouraged a neutral Finland. This neutrality lead to increased cultural and economic ties between the two nations.
Sweden developed its own MIC and produced revolutionary military technology such as the Stridsvang 103B battle tank (see Sources). The issue of the Russian submarine S-363 grounded off Sweden's coast in 1981 caused a media uproar. However, no military conflict has occurred between Sweden and Russia for over a century. Her and Finland's neutrality has been the balm to de-escalate conflict since WWII. Moreover, Helsinki has been the place in which numerous treaties between east and west have been signed to reduce global tensions.
Sweden and Finland's soon to be submitted applications to join NATO are extremely unwise for the safety of their citizens. This is not because Russia wishes their territory, but because Russia will be threatened by NATO forces and particularly any missile sites located within these Nordic countries.
Neutrality, allied with cultural, diplomatic and trade relations are strong tonics for stability and peace, locally and globally, as was demonstrated during the entirety of Cold War I.
De and Re Escalating Nuclear Anihilation
I was a child during the decade between the mid 1970's and 1980's when the horrors of nuclear war were delivered to the public. Storytelling in graphical and animated forms were produced to scare the hell out of us. An adult study of the outcome of nuclear war requires no hyperbole. Please research the term "Nuclear Winter" to become familiar with this singular devastation.
As an aside, full scale nuclear war will not destroy life on earth. It will destroy most complex life, and certainly humans. Extremophiles and various deep sea lifeforms will almost certainly survive. So too will various seeds which will germinate when conditions improve. However, removing most forms of complex animal life is a 500 million year reset on evolution following the Cambrian proliferation of complex life. The planet will survive. Life will survive. "Intelligence" wont.
During the early 1970's the first nuclear non-proliferation treaty was negotiated and signed. The Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty constrained ICBM (Inter-Continental Ballistic (Nuclear) Missiles) to two sites in each of Russia and the USA. This limited the number of locations to be monitored which made launch observation simpler. Flight times were a little over 30 minutes. This "flight time" is the window for diplomatic exchange to prevent a counter-launch which would doom us all.
The next problem was shorter range, or "Intermediate Nuclear Forces", capabilities. These were part of the Cuban Missile Crisis which perhaps one day will be renamed as the Cuba-Turkey Missile Crisis. During the 1970's short range nuclear missiles were littered all over Europe as a nuclear "deterrent". The INF treaty removed this entire class of weapons. The reason for this is that these intermediate missiles' flight time and thus decision making time are reduced down to 10 odd minutes which is nowhere near enough time for any leadership, military or political, to decide if we all die.
In 2002 the USA withdrew from the ABM treaty. In 2007 Vladimir Putin gave a presentation at the Munich Security Conference (see Sources) during which he warned NATO to stop its expansion. Its all about flight/warning times.
In 2019 USA withdrew from the INF Treaty. USA/NATO has been installing "anti-missile defense systems" in eastern Europe, Romania and Poland specifically. Public announcements laughably claim that these sites are defending against attacks from Iran, which has not invaded another country for centuries.
The problem is that these sites can be rapidly converted to offensive missile sites that can carry nuclear weapons. Thus, to profit the USA’s military industrial complex all progress made on nuclear disarmament during the last two decades of Cold War I are in ashes. The flight time/decision making process is back to 10 minutes or less before a choice of global suicide is required.
We are all very lucky to have survived Cold War I. Please research Anatol Andreiapov.
We certainly do not need a Cold War II where missile delivery times are reduced to under 3 minutes, which is what Russia gets with nuclear missiles stationed in Finland. Think about it. This would require that Russia convert its nuclear trigger from human to automated.
It was human intervention that saved us during Cold War I.
The Fig Leaf of Democracy
The most serious decision a government can make is whether its people will join a war. Search hard to find any occasion on which a referendum has been taken to make this decision. Representative rather than direct democracy is the mechanism for removing your citizen influence on all of the most important decisions in political economics, particularly at the international level. Under representative democracy it makes absolute sense for a nation's military to defend its own territory against attack without recourse to a referendum. There is insufficient time. Joining or beginning offensive wars is an entirely a different matter.
Both Sweden and Finland have decided that their applications to join a military alliance, perhaps the next step down the ladder from joining a war, is for the existing parliamentary leadership and not for the people. No referenda shall be held.
The Swedish and Finnish applications to join NATO will be considered at the end of June, providing six weeks for a potential diplomatic solution to the conflict in Ukraine.
[Image: borrowed from Patrick Lawrence’s article at Consortium News.]
An interesting related counter-point is occurring in Denmark, which is already a member of NATO. In 1992 Denmark achieved an exemption from "participation in" the EU's "defence" policy. This exemption allows Denmark to remain independent from EU decisions on military policy. She shall make her own decisions as to whether to be involved in a conflict irrespective of what the EU chooses. A referendum to remove this “carve out” which provides for Denmark’s independence is to be held on June 1, 2022.
The way in which Denmark's referendum question is being phrased is a little concerning. The upcoming referendum's question is:
Stemmer du ja eller nej til, at Danmark kan deltage i det europæiske samarbejde om sikkerhed og forsvar ved at afskaffe EU-forsvarsforbeholdet?
Author's translation into English:
Do you vote yes or no for, Denmark shall participate in European collaborative organisations for security and defence by annulling Denmark's EU defense exemption?
The hidden question is will Denmark be compelled by these EU organisations' decisions? The referendum could be better expressed as:
Do you vote yes or no for, Denmark shall retain her independence from EU collective decisions on policies of defense and security?
Despite the slightly misleading wording of the question, Denmark should be praised for offering her citizenry their essential role in such an important decision.
[Update 2022-06-01]
The results are almost a 2 to 1 split, with the referendum being carried. A day will come when Denmark will be dragged into some European war against her will.
Back to the Chessboard: A Sequence of Checks
On 2022-05-13 USA Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin called his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu to request a ceasefire in the conflict in Ukraine. This curious contact runs counter to narratives in recent western media of Ukraine "winning". This diplomatic feint was illuminated during a recent discussion between Garland Nixon, Ray McGovern and Scott Ritter (see Sources).
Mr Ritter declares that USA provided (though UK manufactured) M777 howitzers are being used by Ukraine north of Karkiv causing a Russian withdrawal. The small number of Russian forces there seem to have been pushed back by the use of these artillery pieces. NATO artillery pieces have a range of around 50 Km while those of Russia are 10 to 15 Km less which inhibits a natural counter-battery capability. The M777 is an exception with only 21 Km range. A question Mr Ritter asks is did Russia fail to prevent or deliberately allow the arrival of these heavy weapons? His more significant comment is that Ukrainian forces are being trained to use heavy weaponry in Germany and Poland and that once complete, with the tens of billions of dollars being supplied to Ukraine in military hardware, this is a significant threat to Russia's forces which will prolong the conflict.
Lloyd Austin stated in early May on visit to Kiev the USA's purpose in supporting the war:
We want to see Russia weakened to the degree that it can't do the kinds of things that it has done in invading Ukraine
Meanwhile, Russian and Donbas forces await the surrender of the small remaining forces hiding in the catacombs of the Mariupol Azovstal steel factory and are slowly but surely surrounding and encroaching upon Ukrainian forces in northern Donbas. [Update: 2022-05-18 the surrender has begun but is being described in western media as an “evacuation”. Yes, the Ukrainian forces are being evacuated, under guard of Russian military personnel to hospitals or Prisoner of War camps.]
Peace via Negotiation
Klarenberg's article reminds us that powerful hidden forces influence our political leadership, and the lack of referenda on war declarations or joining military alliances confirm the disenfranchisement of the citizenry. We are not to be trusted to make such decisions.
History informs us that there are two ways to relieve ourselves from the scourge of war; utter defeat or negotiated settlement. The better solution is to not go to war in the first place! However, conflict is active in Ukraine. Thus, negotiated settlement is the method to prevent more death and destruction. Now that sufficient public funds are being laundered via the MIC and other means, this may even be possible.
What trades can be made to achieve a peace which allows both sides to claim "victory"? What cards are in play?
Will an assurance of the denial of NATO membership to Finland be another of these hidden cards in any peace negotiation?
Update
Of course not. This is about the sale of weapons of war.
Sources
Operation Surprise: leaked emails expose secret intelligence coup to install Boris Johnson, Kit Klarenberg, The Grayzone, 2022-05-16
Meet Carroll Quigley, James Corbett, Corbett Report, 2008-08-05 (republished in video 2021-05-03)
Empire of Bioweapon Lies, Pepe Escobar, Unz Review, 2022-05-13
Episode 343 - Debunking A Century of War Lies, James Corbett, Corbett Report, 2018-08-06
It is foolish for Finland and Sweden to join NATO and ignore both the real causes and consequences, Jan Olberg, TFF - Transnational Foundation for Peace & Future Research, 2022-05-12
Cambrian explosion, Wikipedia
U.S. quits ABM treaty, Manuel Perez-Rivas, CNN, 2001-12-14
You (and Almost Everyone You Know) Owe Your Life to This Man., Robert Krulwich, National Geographic, 2016-03-25
U.S. Withdraws From Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, C. Todd Lopez, USA Department of Defence News, 2019-08-02
PATRICK LAWRENCE: The New Iron Curtain, Patrick Lawrence, Consortium News, 2022-05-16
In first since Ukraine invasion, Pentagon chief speaks with Russian counterpart, Idrees Ali, Reuters, 2022-05-13
If Ukraine Is Winning Why Is The U.S. Requesting A Ceasefire?, b., MoonOfAlabama, 2022-05-14
Video Sources
SATURDAY MORNING LIVE WITH SCOTT RITTER AND RAY MCGOVERN, Nixon interviews McGovern and Ritter, Garland Nixon, 2022-05-14
Putin's famous Munich Speech 2007, Validimir Putin speaks at the 43rd Munich Security Conference, RussianPerspective, uploaded 2015-11-20
Tank Chats #117 | Stridsvang 103B, Curator David Willey, The Tank Museum (Bovington) youtube channel, 2021-02-05
Finland & Sweden Joining NATO Brings WW III Even Closer, Jimmy Dore interviews Aaron Mate, Jimmy Dore Show, 2022-05-17
Azovstal, UK Media calls it an 'evacuation' w/Gonzalo Lira (Live), Alex Christoforou and Alexander Mercouris interview Gonzalo Lira, the Duran, 2022-05-17
The discussion relevant to Scandinavia begins 00:47:47 and ends 00:57:55.
President Dwight Eisenhower Farewell Address, USA President Eisenhower, C-SPAN, 1961-01-17 (date of speech)
"Texas" Bentley and Fergie Chambers report from Donbas front lines, Blumenthal interviews Chambers, The Grayzone, 2022-05-18
The entire “show” is excellent. Mention of Sweden and Finland occurs at 1:51:46
Azov Surrender in Mariupol: Scott Ritter and Richard Medhurst, Medhurst interviews Ritter, Richard Medhurst, 2022-05-20
00:11:20 stream begins
01:08:07 discussion of scandinavian NATO application begins
Macron & Scholz call Putin. Turkey remains firm on NATO vote. Another game-changer. Update 1, Alex Christoforou, his video channel on Rumble, 2022-05-29
00:16:38 is the offset for news about the Swedish and Finnish negotiations with Turkey over her objection to their NATO applications.
Culture
Eve of Destruction, by Barry McGuire from 1965, top40music, uploaded 2020-12-06
I recommend placing in view the above image of the burning of the Trades Union building in Odessa while listening to this cultural contribution. Mr McGuire in a different video informs us that this song was given to him and was used at the end of short 3 hour session in the recording studio. From his back pocket a crumpled page was extracted and smoothed. Thusly were the brilliant lyrics recorded in song.
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