The program looks at Russia’s military operation in Ukraine, its causes, its aims, and its likely aftermaths with Alexander Mercouris, Mark Sleboda, Scott Ritter and Tony Kevin.
After 30 years of NATO expansion towards its borders, and eight-years of a coup regime’s attacks on ethnic Russians in Ukraine, Russia has taken military action to “demilitarize” and “de-nazify” the country.
The world has rallied against Moscow, seeking to destroy its economy. It seems like that was the plan along. Russian President Vladimir Putin fully explained the reasons for Russia’s military intervention, which has been totally ignored by the corporate media. Instead it portrays him as a madman hellbent on conquering Europe. If you disagree with that assessment, of course, you are his puppet.
To discuss the unfolding developments and their historical backgrounds we are joined from Moscow by political analyst Mark Sleboda; also from Moscow by Tony Kevin, a former Australian ambassador to Poland and Cambodia, who was posted to the embassy in Moscow in the last days of the Soviet Union; from London by political analyst and Duran editor, Alexander Mercouris; and from upstate New York by military analyst, former counterintelligence officer and U.N. weapons inspector, Scott Ritter.
great show, great panel, i can listen to scott ritter for hours.
on a totally peripheral issue, i remember that scott was not totally on board with the VIP’S assessment that the DNC was NOT hacked but was rather physically downloaded on a usb stick; here it seems he’s pretty clear he thinks in fact it was the russians ? if so, how did it get to wikileaks ?
As Julian Assange said many times, “How many times do I have to say it. The emails were sent to me directly from someone at the DNC and were not hacked” by the Russians. Why do you think the U.S. is hell bent on the slow murder of Julian Assange? You can’t reveal the crimes of this vicious country and live to tell about it. You will be killed. The whistleblowers go to jail; the criminals get promotions and more money. I haven’t been able to see this show yet and find it hard to believe Scott Ritter thinks Russiagate has any validity.
dog is totally disrespectful of the audience and the other contributors, not to mention the topic and the Russians.
Sorry, I couldn’t watch with the dog yapping in the background.
had to turn it off.
I am very surprised that Mercouris apparently thinks this behavior is funny.
He just fell a few notches in my esteem.
For chrissakes get rid of the barking dog next time.
Very annoying.
I am a huge fan of Mercouris, but this is plain unprofessional.
seemed like a half hour
Bravisimosky!
Excellent, enlightening discussion – many thanks to Joe, Elizabeth and the panelists!
The final comments by Scott Ritter about Politicization of Intelligence gathering and analysis is what has happened to me Medical Establishment. The reputation of the Medical Community in general, was destroyed over the last two years and I don’t see how they can restore the Trust of their patients. It will take Decades to restore it.
Looking at the lack of trust African Americans have decades after the atrocities foisted on them, you might be optimistic about your timeline.
CN and guests are a fringe benefit, Great show!
Still swimming with it. Lots of good stuff in there. Echo that it’s good to see Mark Sleboda back. Two commentators actually in Moscow! Kudos, CN. Though it may look like a group where everyone agrees, there were some distinctive differences in opinion in some critical areas. Is it even possible to de-Nazify Ukraine, for example. How much more damage to accomplish that? (my question)
Most compelling part was discussion around something everyone is dealing with these days. Does what we do & think have an impact, make a difference? I find Alexander’s view on this uplifting but I’m also feeling that if we are engaged in a multi-generational struggle (and I think we are), then signs in our immediate families of how deep an impact there may be from questioning our own government’s motives and actions is, let’s say, questionable at this point. (my opinion) On the mark, CN.
Excellent discussion and valuable insights from all four panelists. The only panelist I didn’t know about before is Tony Kevin.
Since nobody in the comments section has mentioned Alexander Mercouris, I highly recommend him on geopolitics . Check him out on Duran, preferably on Rumble or Locals because many of his episodes are banned by YouTube.
Scott Ritter’s insights are invaluable. But I do disagree with his assessment on Russian hacking of DNC server. I cannot rule out that they didn’t. But Wikileaks did not get the info from Russian. The one does not preclude the other but the way Ritter presented it is not accurate.
Yes, U.S. intelligence professionals, VIPS, including Ray McGovern believe DNC Servers weren’t hacked, but downloaded directly from the computers – IOW it was an “inside job”.
hxxps://www.truthdig.com/articles/u-s-intelligence-veterans-believe-the-russian-hack-of-dnc-computers-may-have-been-an-inside-job/
I think computer/intelligence expert Bill Binney also expressed the view – not sure.
I guess it’s possible at some later time for there to have been a remote hack but evidence of that hasn’t been shared as far as I’ve seen/heard….
Good post.
See my comment on this site. Russiagate was a hoax. Julian Assange said many time that the email were sent directly from the DNC and NOT hacked. Surprised if Scott Ritter doesn’t know that.
Thanks all and particularly Scott. “Reality will smack them in the face”. Mike Tyson agreed with you – “Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.” Hello reality, here it is. Actually, I have never heard a more accurate description of the de-professionalisation of the civil service than Scott’s concluding comments. I’d say Tony Kevin would agree that the same is true here in Australia. Hot air movers divorced from reality. Inability to think an individual thought. While it ruins America it ruins Australia as well. Thanks again to Joe. Brilliant interview.
I agree completely. I was going to add a comment, but Mikael’s comment is precisely mine. Thanks all, and thanks particularly to Scott.
One point not brought up is that Ukraines past as one of worlds largest money laundry.
We can be holding so much truthfully data we stagger under its weight, but the dirty know they are dirty and don’t care who knows and it does not dissuade populace at large opinion of the why events happen.
They act and we the people react, or ignore inconvenient and uncomfortable truths.
Data galore does not change either past or future.
They say wisdom is when we know how to apply our knowledge.
We are all pretty damn intelligent but we lack the wisdom.
Great show. Interesting and informative
Scott Ritter is a gem. I always feel I’m learning from him.
Russia has been banned from the Eurovision Song Contest.
I’m expecting Putin to sue for peace within days.
Thank you for this excellent discussion, despite Mark dropping out from ‘technical’ issues. It’s high time that Putin at last has put a stop to the pogromist war conducted by the Ukrainian/Banderaite nazis on Russian-speaking Ukrainians. As Putin stated, he hasn’t started a war but is ending one. Nevertheless, it would have been preferable if Russia had put a stop to the nazi regime much earlier, in 2014. Especially after the Odessa atrocity.
Putin’s targetting the nazis is to be cheered, and Russia’s enforcing of the exercise of the right of national self determination of the Russian-speaking people of LPR and DPR is also to be cheered. This is regardless of the greater strategic need to put an end to NATO, which of course is also desperately needed.
Victory to LPR and DPR! The quicker all the nazis and their helpers including ISIS head-choppers and CIA/military contractors meet their makers the better.
I am frankly outraged that Scott Ritter, 6 years later, on CONSORTIUM NEWS NO LESS, is still parroting the evidence-free lie that the Russians had anything whatsoever to do with the DNC leaks of 2016. Right here on Consortium News, where Billy Binney and Skip Holden published their thorough VIPS report debunking the DNC-server-hacked-by-Russians narrative as violating basic physics and realities of internet infrastructure… Just disgusting.
Hear, hear. Also his acting as if Sullivan and Blinken have any actual policy-power, as if Trump’s ‘purging’ in anyway changed the long term targets of us geostrategic policy. Ritter is not exempt from ‘once a spook always a spook’-adage, imo.
Good post Martin.thanks.
from US, Midwest, Wisconsin
This hosting and discussion – CN Live! Russia Hits Back – is so outstandingly helpful that I cannot express enough appreciation to you, Joe, et al, and Consortium News… for a moment of “escape” into sanity, along with specific enlightenment on so many issues.
Please reassemble your guests some weeks down the road!
Peace.
Dan
From US. Midwest, Illinois
Totally agree.
Um, Scott, Julian Assange, known for his hyper-honesty and 100% accuracy of his organization’s output over a 10 + year period, states unequivocally that the DNC/Clinton hacks did not come from Russia. Significant evidence points to the ‘randomly’-murdered Seth Rich doing it from an insider’s-only ability. Craig Murray has much to say regarding this hypothesis. And Consortium News has given much space, many column inches devoted to this matter from several perspectives.
Bill Binney, the tech architect of the NSA stands out here, and numerous others have maintained it was not a hack by the Russians. If you have inside, non-speculative knowledge indicating otherwise, I’m quite sure many if not most CN readers would like to hear of it. Otherwise you are needlessly furthering both the anti-Russian mood of this crazed country and damaging Julian Assange’s reputation in the public eye.
I’m all for the facts, let the chips fall where they may.
And thanks for the hard facts you do bring to the table. I remain an avid follower of your analyses.
Apparently, despite Ritter’s creditations, it appears he knows nothing about internet or computer technology.
It has been PROVEN, the data ALLEGEDLY hacked, could not have been via the internet. The only way that data could have been obtained, was via direct download from the source, using a Hard drive or data stick. That is the FACT. So anyone still pursuing the MSM claims that the Russians did it via hacking, is extremely suspect for their reasoning in maintaining such a claim.
Not only that, but all of the time stamps on the DNC leaked files had even second counts, a signature of FAT file systems which are typical of removable media but have no reason to be used within computers for computer-to-computer internet data transfer.
Exactly. Thank you. Love you, Scott, but please be FULLY evidence-based.
great show and analysis.
Scott Ritter is good but a bit too dominant. I did not know Mark Sleboda before and found his contribution very pertinent. Thanks you, Joe for giving us this useful insight.
I miss Mark Sleboda’s analysis when he was a frequent guest on RT’s “Cross Talk” program with Peter Lavelle. I often wondered what happened to him. Many THANKS to CN, Joe Lauria and your wonderful staff! Robert is smiling down at you all with a “thumbs up” thanks, for carrying on his fight in telling the truth.
Mark Sleboda on Ukrain ? Looking forward to this!