Assessing the Russian military as an instrument of power

This article was written for the Unz Review:http://www.unz.com/tsaker/assessing-the-russian-military-as-an-instrument-of-power/

It has been a quarter of a century now since the fall of the Soviet Union and yet the memory of the Soviet Armed Forces is still vivid in the minds of many of those who lived through the Cold War or even remember WWII. The NATO-sponsored elites of eastern Europe still continue to scare their citizens by warning of a danger of “Russian tanks” rolling down their streets as if the Soviet tanks were about to advance on Germany again.

EFCC Arrests Francis Ayade Over Contract Scam

A brother to the Cross Rivers State Governor, Professor Ben Ayade has been arrested by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, nigerianewspaper.com.ng has gathered on Wednesday.

The relation, Dr. Francis Ayade was arrested on Tuesday in connection with an alleged N2.4billion contract scam.

Ukraine’s Plot to Exchange a Citizen of Israel for Terrorists who Killed Russian Officers, by Scott Humor

Last week while we were celebrating the success of Russian athletes, other people were busy cooking up some fake news mixed with Hollywood-style horrors and injustices.  To make a long story short, a blogger living in Ukraine known as varyag2007 has been almost, not quite, but very close to being arrested by the SBU. We were informed that the arrest is going to take place if not now then most definitely in the distant future. I am talking about the self proclaimed “anti-fascist” blogger Miroslava Berdnik

Buhari's Case: Justice Abang Removes Self

Justice Abang removes self from case against Buhari

Justice Abang has disqualified himself from a case against President Buhari – Incorporated Trustees of Oron Union brought a case against PMB regarding his nominations – The nominations of Mr Obong and Frank Samuel to the NDDC board led to the filing of the suit against President Muhammadu Buhari.

What Kerry Discussed With Buhari And Governors

The United States has pledged more support to Nigeria’s anti-graft fight even as it praised President Muhammadu Buhari’s courage.
“We applaud what you are doing. Corruption creates a ready-made playing field for recruiting extremists,” visiting U.S. Secretary of State, Mr John Kerry, told Buhari at a closed-door meeting at the Presidential Villa yesterday.

Police Arrests 200 Suspects Over Destruction Of Police Station, Vehicles, Other Buildings In Anambra State

No fewer than 200 suspects involved in a fracas between the Abagana community in Njikoka Local Government Area and Ukpo, in Dunukofia Local Council Area of Anambra State were arrested on Monday by the Anambra Police Command.

The suspects allegedly burnt two police vehicles and destroyed five buildings in the area.

In the wake of Biden’s visit: Serbia at the geopolitical crossroad

by Stephen Karganovic

US Vice President Joseph Biden just completed a “three day visit to Serbia.” The phrase in parentheses is the spin Serbia’s puppet government in Belgrade puts on it. He actually spent only a couple of hours in Belgrade, just enough to deliver instructions. From there he flew off to Prishtina to spend the bulk of his time on Serbian territory in the NATO occupied province of Kosovo with his real friends, who were put in charge as a result of the 1999 aggression against Yugoslavia.

Indonesia Govt. Approves Castration For S3x Offenders Who Prey On Children

The Indonesian president, Joko Widodo, signed a decree on Wednesday authorizing chemical castration for convicted child sex offenders and requiring those released on parole to wear electronic monitoring devices.

President Buhari, Mallam Garba Shehu and I by Oby Ezekwesili

Read her statement below...
I woke up yesterday to read a fictitious report credited to me by Sunday Tribune that I claimed President Muhammadu Buhari does not deserve to be president. And on the basis of the fiction weaved together by a reporter, he let loose one of those now-very-common indecorous and rumor- inspired verbal assault from presidential spokesman, Mallam Garba Shehu.

How RRS Foiled My Chance To Make Money – Interstate Cable Thief (pics)

Kunle Falayi

Pics: Ojoka beside the manhole and with a cutter he used

Thirty-year-old Kogi State indigene, Pius Ojoka, decided on Wednesday morning that his daily bread was going to come from stealing cables.

But what he did not envisage was the routine patrol of operatives of the Rapid Response Squad of the Lagos State Police Command on the Third Mainland Bridge.

Justice Abang Faces NJC Probe Over Conflicting Rulings

NJC panel to grill Judge Sept.

Following recent conflicting rulings over the governorship tussle in Abia State and the leadership crises rocking the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, by Justice Okon Abang of the federal High Court Abuja, the National Judicial Council, NJC, has commenced discreet investigations on the judge.

Fayose, Others Working To Kill Pdp —babatope

Chief Ebenezer Babatope is former Minister of Transport, who served as the Director-General of Campaign Organisation of Chief Olabode George for national chairmanship of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the botched convention of the party. He speaks with BOLA BADMUS on his experience and the various factors that were at play, leading to the failed exercise. Excerpts:

Man baths married woman with acid for infecting him with 'magun' and lying that she's a widow

Yisau Adeleke, 43, has been arrested, 9 months after bathing his lover, Morufa Ajoke Odesanya, a 36-year-old mother-of-five, with acid, after discovering that she was married, contrary to her claim of being a widow, Tribune reports.

FG Imports Russian War Helicopters, Uavs From Dubai

The Federal Government is making a comprehensive arrangement to respond to the attacks on oil installations in the Niger Delta region through the importation of sophisticated military hardware.

A top military source said on Saturday that the Defence authorities had completed arrangements to bring in latest Unmanned Aerial Vehicles to boost the planned military operation in the oil-rich region.

Suicide note allegedly found after woman disappeared with one of her children

Bayelsa State Chief Judge’s son dies inside Abuja swimming pool

Wariebi Abiri, a graduate of law, a student of the Nigerian Law School, Abuja and the son of Hon. Justice Kate Abiri, reportedly died in a swimming pool last Friday night. The Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson, has expressed deep shock over his untimely death.

Tinubu, PDP and the Road to 2019 - by Dele Momodu

Fellow Nigerians, you must be wondering what this title is all about. Please, calm down, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, one of Nigeria’s iconic politicians, is not about to dump his party, APC, for PDP, the party he fought hard with others to sack from power just last year.

I knelt and begged him, yet he slaughtered my daughter in my presence – Mother of MTN worker murdered by suitor

The inch-long scar on the neck of 53-year-old Mrs. Christiana Ashinwo, is one of the physical reminders of the horror of Sunday, April 24, 2016. She sat on a chair quietly in the sitting room of a house in Agbado area of Lagos, which she built with the sweat and suffering of many years as a single mother and plank vendor. Her head was bowed when our correspondent went to meet her.

DPR Prepares For Full-scale War With Pro-kiev Forces

The Donetsk People’s Republic is preparing for a full-scale war, which is expected at any day.

Photo: AFP / Getty Images / Dominique Faget

Artillery attacks have dramatically increased around the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) andUkrainian President Petro Poroshenko said that he does not exclude a full-scale Russian invasion in all directions. The smell of a war has again appeared in the east of Ukraine.

Pentagon Threats To Shoot Down Syrian Planes Over Hasakah

A picture released by the US Navy shows an F/A-18C Hornet assigned to the Rampagers of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 83 preparing to launch from the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) on June 17, 2013 in the Mediterranean Sea. (AFP Photo/US Navy) / AFP

Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. Jeff Davis has said that the United States is ready to shot down Syrian government warplanes over the city of Hasakah in eastern Syria. The United States also scrambled warplanes near Hasakah, after Syrian SU-24 attack aircraft dropped bombs “dangerously near” the US Special Forces sericemembers deployed with the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) in the area.

Military Situation In Hasakah: Clashes Between Pyd-linked Kurdish Forces And Government Forces Ongoing

After attempts to reach a ceasefire agreement between the pro-government forces and units loyal to the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) failed on August 18, clashes are ongoing in the city of Al-Hasaka. According to the pro-opposition Syrian Observatory of Human Rights, 10 civlians were killed due too the clashes.

Could Trump Pull Off a Post-Party Coalition?

by Pepe Escobar for Sputnik News

Hillary Clinton, Queen of Chaos, Queen of War, Golden Goldman Girl, for all practical purposes is by now the official bipartisan candidate of US neocons and neoliberalcons alike.

Certified add-ons include Wall Street; selected hedge funds; TPP cheerleaders; CFR (Council on Foreign Relations) interventionists; media barons; multinational corporate hustlers; in fact virtually the whole exceptionalist US establishment, duly underwritten by the bipartisan, mega-wealthy 0.0001%.

19-year-old Nigerian macheted to death in the U.K .

Andre Aderemi was stabbed at least 20 times, on Tuesday, after being pursued by three others carrying machetes, at Monks Hills estate, Selsdon, Croydon. He later died at the hospital. 3 men, all 19, have been arrested in connection to the murder.

Russia Deployed Bombers to Iranian Base That US Could Use 'Prior to 1979'

The United States has not been happy that Russia and Iran expanded their military cooperation to an extent that Tehran allowed Moscow to send its bombers on counterterrorism missions in Syria from the Hamadan airfield, an unprecedented step for the Islamic Republic.

Sputnik International interviews the Saker

This is the full text of the interview Sputnik International made with the Saker:

Sputnik: Following the meeting between Vladimir Putin and Recep Erdogan Startfor suggested that Ankara could make concessions to Moscow and Iran on Syria. Is a Russo-Turko-Iranian alliance possible? Is it possible that Turkey will soften its tough stance on the Syrian government and Bashar al-Assad?