WW4 File/Communist Bloc Military Updates: Putin authorizes resumption of Tu-160 supersonic bomber production after 24-year hiatus, 50 new “Blackjacks” to be built for Russian Air Force, support Moscow’s nuclear deterrent ahead of maiden flight of PAK-DA stealth bomber in 2019; current force of 15 Tu-160s built during Soviet era, undergoing comprehensive upgrades for avionics, power plants, conventional armaments; Kremlin allocated US$84.5 billion to military budget in 2014, but Russian defense industry likely to be stretched by huge order for world’s largest combat aircraft; White House counters Red China’s territorial aspirations in S. China Sea, Pentagon deploys B-1 bombers, surveillance aircraft to Darwin, Northern Territory, 1,150 US Marines undergoing 6-month training regime in Australia’s “Top End,” number of Marines “Down Under” to be augmented to 2,500 in 2017; Chinese Foreign Ministry voices “serious concern” about US military presence in Australia, spokeswoman Hua Chunying says China would “resolutely safeguard its territorial sovereignty,” urges Washington “not to take any risks or make any provocations”

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WW4 File: UKRAINE-RUSSIA WAR: Kiev, Moscow lurch closer to open war as Ukraine formally rescinds military cooperation with Russia, prohibits resupply of 1,500 Russian troops in tiny, landlocked Transnistria; 66 public orgs in Moldova’s breakaway region respond with appeal to Putin for “protection” from Ukrainian army, “NATO activities” in Moldova proper, senior Russian DM official: “The Russian contingent will be supplied under any circumstances”; 3,000 Moldovans march past parliament, demand reunification with Romania, shout “Good bye, Russia! Don’t forget Bessarabia [Moldova’s old name] is not yours!”; Romanian irredentist organizes Chisinau rally, enlists support of 40 Romanian lawmakers in Action 2012 group, Moldovan security agency expels George Simion for 5 years; 10-20% of Moldovans, 75% of Romanians support reunification; Romanian-speaking Moldova part of Russian Empire 1812-1918, Soviet republic 1940-1991, briefly part of Romania 1918-1940; Romanian PM Ponta on state visit to Moldova, talks energy with counterpart Gaburici; during 2014 address to ruling party activists Ponta urged reunification of two countries within EU, shrugged off Kremlin ire

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WW4 File/Communist Bloc Military Updates: Russia launches large-scale air defense drill in W., C., S. Military Districts, involves 250 aircraft, 12,000 servicemen, strategic bombers to test-launch cruise missiles at targets in Siberia; Center-2015 exercise in Sept. to test defensive capabilities of all branches of Russian Armed Forces; USAF B-52 bombers in first-ever deployment to neutral Sweden for June 13 exercise, Sweden’s Left, Green parties protest, Maj.-Gen. Engelbrektson: “How Russia interprets that, they can decide for themselves”; Estonia urges “long-term” presence of NATO troops in Baltic states, warily eyes Russian military’s establishment of bases near border under guise of exercises; Russian FSB arrests spy reportedly working for Lithuanian MI, Vilnius denies allegation, follows repeated disruption by Russian warships of laying of 400-km Nordbalt power cable between Lithuania, Sweden; US, Canadian fighter jets to participate in NORAD’s Amalgam Dart drill in Canada’s High Arctic, “train in aerospace detection and defence”

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Communist Bloc Military Updates: Swedish fighter jets intercept two Russian Tu-22M “Backfire” bombers near island of Oland, follows neutral Stockholm’s participation in NATO ASW drill in North Sea; Russian Su-27 fighter jet flew within 20 feet of US recon aircraft over Baltic Sea on April 7, London-based NGO says such incidents numerous, warns of “high probability of causing casualties or a direct military confrontation between Russia and Western states”; People’s Liberation Army Air Force unnerves Japanese officials, holds provocative, first-ever exercise between Japan’s Miyako, Okinawa islands, cruise missile-equipped Xian H-6K strategic bombers also fly near contested Diaoyu/Senkaku islets; H-6K powered by 2 Russian-built D-30-KP2 turbofans, boasts combat radius of 3,500 km (i.e., can strike Hawaii); PLAAF spokesman: “The drill is not targeted at any country and carries no threat against other countries and regions”; follows PLAAF’s first-ever drill over Bashi Channel S of Taiwan in March

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Communist Bloc Military Updates: Russian, Red Chinese warships arrive in Mediterranean Sea for “Naval Cooperation 2015” maneuvers, joint command based on guided-missile cruiser Moskva, flagship of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, Vice Adm. Fedotenkov: Russia-China exercise “not directed against a third party”; Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organization deploys 2,500 troops to Tajikistan for war game, prompts fears of Moscow’s influence in C. Asia after Pentagon withdraws troops from Afghanistan; fearing Russian revanchism in wake of Crimean annexation, covert intervention in Ukraine’s Donbass, Estonia stages largest military drill in country’s post-Soviet history, Estonian armed forces lack tanks, jet fighters, but mobilize every regular soldier, conscript, reservist for total deployment of 26,000 personnel, 1,000 NATO troops join “Exercise Hedgehog”

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EU File: Czech police find IED in Brno flat on Apr. 28, charge six “leftist extremists” with plotting attack against military train on Prague-Plzeň line, accused members of Network of Revolutionary Cells, face 12 to 20 years in prison; 200 Czech, Russian anarchists march through Prague on May 1, protest nationwide crackdown targeting left-wing arsonists; 200-300 members of neo-Nazi Workers’ Social Justice Party march through Brno same day, 1,500 anti-fascists hold counter-rally, 600 police use tear gas to prevent confrontation, arrest 44 counter-protesters; Charter 77 Foundation honored Czech anarchist leader in 2001, Jakub Polák died in 2012; Kremlin’s far-right European network extends to Prague as Civic Conservative Party hosts anti-EU conference at Chamber of Deputies, invites France’s National Front chief, Marine Le Pen meets with ex-Pres. Vaclav Klaus, First Czech-Russian Bank issued controversial loan to French neo-fascists

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Communism with Canadian Characteristics: Election shocker in Canada’s energy-rich Alberta province: New Democrats (NDP) to form majority socialist government as voters repudiate 44-year Progressive Conservative (PC) dynasty, 80 years of rightist dominance in Edmonton; ruling PCs collapse from 70 (of 87) seats in legislature to 10, NDP surges from 4 to 53 seats, “orange wave” (party color) sweeps over provincial capital, Calgary, surges into rural ridings; Premier Prentice wins own riding, but resigns as party leader, MLA, blames party defeat on deflated oil prices; Premier-designate Notley to raise income taxes, review fossil fuel royalty regime, strengthen “climate change” controls, oppose Keystone XL, Northern Gateway pipelines; right-wing Albertans angered by ruling party arrogance, 50,000 layoffs in O&G sector, inter-party defections, shift support to upstart Wildrose Party; S&P/TSX composite index reacts, falls 401 points over 2 days; Calgary consulting firm: “[Tuesday] may have seen the biggest, . . . most unexpected swing that Albertans will see for a generation as the province swerved hard to the political left”

We seldom post under this category, but it just so happens your resident blogger lives in “Wild Rose Country.”

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Ezra Levant: Albertans wanted a broom, not a hammer and sickle

Ezra Levant bio

WW4 File: UKRAINE-RUSSIA WAR: Neutral Finland sends letters to 900,000 reservists (out of population of 5.5 million), informs them of roles in “crisis situation,” denies any connection to Russian invasion of Ukraine, aggressive postures around NATO periphery; follows Finnish Navy’s unfriendly Apr. 27 encounter with suspected Russian sub in territorial waters, months of Russian air force sorties, army drills near 800-mile common border; conscription campaign apparently designed to offset defense budget cuts, regular force downsizing; 11 NATO states invite neutral Sweden–for the first time–to join one of its largest-ever anti-submarine exercise in North Sea, US Rear Adm. Brad Williamson comments on “Dynamic Mongoose”: “Russia has a right to be at sea, just as we do. But the incidents we have seen are not in line with international regulations… and that’s been the cause of concern”; Norwegian think tank urges government to boost defense budget: “The Ukraine crisis marks the end of a long period of peace time in Europe”

The winds of war are definitely blowing through Europe, but the shopping mall regime in North America continues to sleepwalk.

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USSR2 File: Russia plunders, destabilizes tiny Moldova: 10,000 Moldovans take to streets of Chisinau, protest disappearance of US$1.5 billion central bank loan to three private institutions, parliamentary committee report leaked to press, says Russian banks believed to be secret recipients; transactions apparently happened over several days, prior to last November’s election, pro-EU parties narrowly “squeezed out” pro-Moscow Communists, Socialists; Moldova’s Banca de Economii, Banca Sociala, Unibank hold 1/3 of all bank assets in Europe’s poorest country, including money for pension payments; Gagauzia autonomous region elects ex-communist as governor, Russian MPs and entertainers appear on campaign trail with Vlah, Moscow resident Yabukov finances Irina’s election bid, Kremlin hails victory; Russian troops conduct exercise in breakaway region of Transnistria on Apr. 9, drill involves APCs, grenade launchers, expends 100,000 rounds of ammo, 2,500-man occupational force stationed 60 miles away from Ukraine’s culturally divided port city of Odessa

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Gray Terror File: Terrorist provocations unsettle Balkan stability as Macedonia’s state prosecutor indicts top Social Democrat, opposition leader over wiretap revelations challenging center-right PM; Zaev urges mass protests against Gruevski; 40 gunmen with “UCK” insignia seized police outpost in Macedonian border town of Gosnice on Apr. 21, disarmed, beat 4 police; Interior Ministry spokesman called incident “state terrorist attack” (i.e., coordinated by Pristina), police raid abandoned houses near Kosovo/Serbian border, find weapons, ammo; remnants of (officially) defunct Kosovo Liberation Army claim responsibility; motorcycle rider hurls grenade at office of Macedonia’s Democratic Union for Integration (BDI) on May 3, blast occurs in W. town of Mala Recica, child injured; pro-Albanian BDI descended from Macedonia’s KLA-spawned National Liberation Army, in ruling coalition with Gruevski’s VMRO-DPMNE; ISIS-linked Muslim gunman storms police station in Bosnian Serb town of Zvornik on Apr. 27, opens fire, kills Serb policeman, wounds two others; Milorad Dodik, president of Bosnia’s Serb Republic, renews threat to hold referendum on secession in 2018

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