Joe Biden: VS mengt zich nooit in verkiezingen in andere landen...... ha! ha! ha! ha! ha!

Ongelofelijk weer deze uitspraak van Joe Biden, de president van het land dat overal waar het haar belangen ten goede komt ingrijpt, (vooral) democratisch gekozen regeringen die zich niet schikken naar de wensen van de VS zijn de klos. Ten eerste door het organiseren van demonstraties tegen zo'n bewind waar het de bedoeling is dat zo'n regime opstapt, ten tweede als dat niet lukt legt de VS zo'n land sancties op en dat gebaseerd op een hele berg leugens, in de hoop dat het volk ontevreden wordt (vanwege lege schappen in de winkels en rijen tot ver voor de deur) Zo hebben de illegale sancties van de VS (Canada, Groot-Brittannië en de EU) tegen Venezuela intussen aan meer dan 50.000 mensen het leven gekost, in feite een massamoord........ (zonder het beoogde resultaat te kunnen bereiken: Maduro afzetten, ondanks alles haalt hij nog steeds de meerderheid van de stemmen!!) Ten derde als dat niet lukt door het organiseren en regisseren van een coup (door delen van de krijgsmacht van zo'n land om te kopen), waarbij de CIA altijd de gangmaker is...... Mocht zelfs dat niet lukken is de VS in staat om zo'n land binnen te vallen, waar men uiteraard een berg leugens voor gebruikt, zie de illegale oorlogen van de VS tegen Afghanistan, Irak, Libië en Syrië.....

En dan durven beweren dat de VS zich niet met verkiezingen elders bezig houdt, terwijl dat aantoonbaar een fiks aantal keren is gebeurd, maar vergeleken met het hier bovenstaande is dat nog maar kinderwerk..... Het laatst bekende voorbeeld van bemoeienis met verkiezingen van de VS was die in Bolivia, waar de VS niet alleen de verkiezingen probeerde te beïnvloeden, maar na de overwinning van president Evo Morales de coup tegen deze democratisch gekozen president heeft georganiseerd en geregisseerd..... Een ander voorbeeld is het eerder al genoemde Venezuela, de VS had zelfs het gore lef om daar na de verkiezingen zelf een andere president aan te stellen, de fascist Guaidó, die goed was voor ongeveer 2% van de stemmen...... (volgens de VS was hij oppositieleider, een leugen die men in de westerse pers overnam, hoe belachelijk en doorzichtig deze valse claim ook was....) 

Voormalig CIA directeur Woolsey gaf in een tv interview toe dat de VS verkiezingen elders manipuleert, maar dat is 'voor de goede zaak', aldus deze smerige ploert...... 

Het meest lullige van de uitspraak die Joe Biden deed is wel dat de VS in de 90er jaren openlijk de verkiezingen in Rusland heeft gemanipuleerd........

Uiteraard weten de reguliere (massa-) media al het voorgaande, echter geen onvertogen woord toen de volgens Caitlin Johnstone president met soep hersenen werd gevraagd wat hij Putin had gezegd over Russische bemoeienis met de verkiezingen in de VS........ (een leugen die intussen al 100 keer is doorgeprikt, maar die de westerse media en politici gewoon levend houden.....)

Biden antwoordde op zijn onnavolgbare manier door te vragen (in deze aapt hij jezus na) hoe de VS door de rest van de wereld zou worden gezien als het zich met de verkiezingen van andere landen zou bemoeien en iedereen zou weten dat dit waar is? Hoe zou het zijn als we ons met activiteiten zouden bezighouden waarmee hij (Putin, Ap) bezig is? Het verkleint de status van een land dat wanhopig probeert haar status als wereldmacht te bewaren...... ha! ha! ha! ha! ha! Het is deze dwaas echt in de bol geslagen, zonder enig bewijs voor deze leugens te geven*, is het juist de VS die keer op keer op spionage wordt betrapt, zelfs haar eigen partners (in oorlogsmisdaden) worden bespioneerd door de  VS...... Als je denkt dat de VS daarbij bedrijfsgeheimen ontziet, ben je behoorlijk naïef, uiteraard worden ook zaken meegenomen als innovaties die op universiteiten worden uitgedacht of die door bedrijven zelf worden bedacht, deze worden doorgespeeld aan ofwel universiteiten dan wel aan het (grote) bedrijfsleven in de VS........

Caitlin ziet in het zwijgen van de pers, i.p.v. in een enorme lachbui uit te barsten na deze smerige leugens van Biden, volkomen terecht nogmaals een bewijs dat die pers er alleen is om propaganda te maken en om de door de eigenaars gewenste status quo te bewaren en te verdedigen, zaken die uiteraard gelijk opgaan, immers die zijn ook in het belang van de Biden administratie en van de wapenindustrie, de zakenbankensector, de oliemaatschappijen en andere grote bedrijven waarin men aandelen heeft (ofwel het grote bedrijfsleven dat Biden in haar zak heeft....)....

Joe Biden durfde eerder Putin voor 'killer' (moordenaar) uit te maken, terwijl hij als vicepresident onder Obama al mede verantwoordelijk was voor een enorm aantal doden vanwege de illegale oorlogen die deze administratie begon tegen Libië en Syrië, dit nog naast het grote aantal moorden op verdachten middels drones, waarbij meer dan 90% van de doden niet eens werd verdacht...... Voorts waren de door de Obama administratie opgezette staatsgrepen in Honduras en Oekraïne ook nog eens de reden voor een groot aantal doden...... Kortom Putin kan als 'killer' nog niet in de schaduw staan van Joe Biden, die als president ook al weer verantwoordelijk is voor een fiks aantal moorden en dat in landen waar de VS niets te zoeken heeft.......

Tot slot: vergeet niet dat Biden er geen moeite mee had toen Palestijnenslachter en Israëlische opperschoft Netanyahu de senaat toesprak en daarbij de verkiezingen in 2016 manipuleerde...... 

America’s Soup-Brained President Says The US Never Interferes In Other Countries’ Elections

by Caitlin Johnstone

Listen to a reading of this article:

During an astonishingly sycophantic press conference after the Geneva summit with Vladimir Putin, President Biden posited an entirely hypothetical scenario about what the world would think of the United States if it were interfering in foreign elections and everybody knew it.

When AP's Jonathan Lemire asked the president of the most powerful government in the world what "consequences" he'd threatened the Russian leader with should the Kremlin interfere in US elections going forward, Biden meandered his way through one of his signature not-quite-lucid word salads, and then said the following:

"Let’s get this straight: How would it be if the United States were viewed by the rest of the world as interfering with the elections directly of other countries, and everybody knew it?  What would it be like if we engaged in activities that he is engaged in?  It diminishes the standing of a country that is desperately trying to make sure it maintains its standing as a major world power."

The fact that the entire press corps did not erupt in side-splitting laughter at this ridiculous utterance is in itself proof that western news media is pure propaganda. The United States has directly interfered in scores of foreign elections since it began its ascent to global domination at the end of the second World War, to say nothing of all the coups, color revolutions, proxy conflicts and regime change military invasions it has also participated in during that time. The US openly interfered in Russia's elections in the nineties, and literally just tried to stage a coup in Bolivia by interfering in its democratic process. The US is far and away the single most egregious offender in the world on this front, which is largely why it is perceived around the world as a greater threat to democracy than any other government.

This is not a secret, internationally or in the United States. Anyone who has done any learning about the US government's actual behavior on the world stage knows this. Hell, a former CIA director openly joked about it on Fox News a few years ago.

Fox's Laura Ingraham unsurprisingly introduced former CIA Director James Woolsey as "an old friend" in a 2018 interview about Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller’s indictment of 13 alleged members of a Russian troll farm, in which Woolsey unsurprisingly talked about how dangerous Russian "disinformation" is and Ingraham unsurprisingly said that everyone should actually be afraid of China. What was a bit surprising, though, was what happened at the end of the interview.

"Have we ever tried to meddle in other countries' elections?" Ingraham asked in response to Woolsey's Russia remarks.

"Oh, probably," Woolsey said with a grin. "But it was for the good of the system in order to avoid the communists from taking over. For example, in Europe, in '47, '48, '49, the Greeks and the Italians we CIA-"

"We don't do that anymore though?" Ingraham interrupted. "We don't mess around in other people's elections, Jim?"

Woolsey smiled and said said "Well...", followed by a joking incoherent mumble, adding, "Only for a very good cause."

And then they both laughed.

The fact that not one person in the press pool questioned or criticized Biden's outrageous remarks tells you everything you need to know about the western media and what its real function is. This is further illustrated by the rest of the behavior of these odious propagandists during the summit, which was illustrated quite well by the glowing praise of Democratic Party insider Andrea Chalupa on Twitter:

"The winners of #GenevaSummit2021 are the White House press corp," Chalupa said. "Excellent questions confronting Putin and challenging Biden on holding a summit with a ruthless dictator. And they literally held their ground when shoved by Putin's security and propagandists."

That actually says it all. Western reporters are forbidden by their oligarchic owners from ever confronting power in any meaningful way; the closest they're ever allowed to get to punching up is challenging the leaders of CIA-targeted governments, and demanding to know why their own leaders aren't being more hawkish and aggressive toward those leaders.

As RT's Murad Gazdiev pointed out, "ABC, NBC, BBC, CNN, and many other Western outlets were invited for Putin’s press conference. No Russian media was invited to Biden’s press conference." The whole thing was a navel-gazing, masturbatory cold war propaganda orgy where western "journalists" made up fantasies about their soup-brained leader staring down Putin, where they yelled nonsense about Alexei Navalny at the Russian president and then fangirled at Biden's response.

Glenn Greenwald ✔ @ggreenwald

Can anyone imagine a US corporate journalist screaming at Biden: "Why do you fear Assange so much?"

Always easy to condemn the acts of the governments your country tells you to see as Enemy. Much harder - and way more meaningful - to challenge your own government's repression. https://twitter.com/JenniferJJacobs/status/1405124334549704705 …

Jennifer Jacobs ✔ @JenniferJJacobs

I yelled to Putin why do you fear navalny so much. Putin heard me and didn’t answer. Biden flashed me a big toothy grin.

 

7,125 likes 3:11 PM - Jun 16, 2021

1,912 people are talking about this 

 

Real journalists go to Belmarsh Prison for exposing US war crimes. Western propagandists ask Putin why he's such a doodoo dumb dumb poopy head and then dream about Pulitzers all night.

Western news media exists to funnel propaganda into the minds of the public. It is controlled by plutocrats who work in alliance with opaque government agencies to weave narratives about why the US government needs to do the things it had already planned on doing anyway. This gets more obvious by the day.

____________________

The best way to get around the internet censors and make sure you see the stuff I publish is to subscribe to the mailing list for at my website or on Substack, which will get you an email notification for everything I publish. My work is entirely reader-supported, so if you enjoyed this piece please consider sharing it around, following me on Facebook, Twitter, Soundcloud or YouTube, or throwing some money into my tip jar on Ko-fi, Patreon or Paypal. If you want to read more you can buy my books. Everyone, racist platforms excluded, has my permission to republish, use or translate any part of this work (or anything else I’ve written) in any way they like free of charge. For more info on who I am, where I stand, and what I’m trying to do with this platform, click here. 

Bitcoin donations:1Ac7PCQXoQoLA9Sh8fhAgiU3PHA2EX5Zm2

Caitlin Johnstone | June 17, 2021 at 1:04 am | Tags: biden, democracy, elections, Geneva summit, Politics, Putin | Categories: Article, News | URL: https://wp.me/p9tj6M-2Ch

Comment

See all comments

 ========================================

* Zoals dat gebruikelijk is in de VS: leugens melden waarbij men stelt geen bijzonderheden te kunnen vrijgeven daar dit menselevens in gevaar zou brengen...... Nee, de geheime diensten melden het e.e.a. dus is het waar, maakt niet uit hoe vaak deze diensten aantoonbaar hebben gelogen......

---------------------------------

Zie ook: 'Joe Biden: als de NAVO niet bestond moest deze worden uitgevonden..... ha! ha! ha! ha! ha!'

'VS bespioneert haar EU lakeien en steelt daarbij bedrijfsgeheimen: ach de VS is een bondgenoot dus waarom zou je je druk maken.........'

''Klokkenluidersbescherming' in VS: Obama en Biden lieten journalisten en redacties afluisteren om klokkenluiders te pakken' (en zie de links in dat bericht naar meer artikelen over o.a. Julian Assange en opperschoft Navalny)

'Het verschil tussen totalitaire regimes en 'vrije democratieën' flinterdun en soms zelfs niet bestaand....'

'Antony Blinken (VS minister BuZa) leest de wereld de les over persvrijheid terwijl zijn eigen regering deze zwaar geweld aandoet'

'Julian Assange bijna 2 jaar lang in isolatiefolter voor het openbaren van oorlogsmisdaden.......' (intussen op 18 juni 2021 is Assange al dik meer dan 2 jaar gefolterd door hem in isolatie te houden, een schande van gigantische proporties!!) (en zie de links in dat bericht!!) 

'Navalny gebombardeerd tot oppositieleider, of hoe men Rusland geheel hypocriet blijft demoniseren' (Navalny, een fascist en wat een verschil in westerse behandeling vergeleken met Julian Assange.....) (en zie de links in dat bericht)

'Navalny slachtoffer? Assange is het echte slachtoffer!!'

'Navalny wordt geprezen terwijl Assange wordt gemarteld' (en dan is Navalny ook nog eens een misdadige fascist!!)

'Barbaarse oorlogsmisdaden van Azerbeidzjan tijdens de oorlog van 2020 tegen Armenië' (met hulp van NAVO-lidstaat Turkije.....) (en zie de links in dat bericht!!)

'Kamala Harris (vicepresident VS) roept bevolking van Guatemala op niet naar de VS 'te vertrekken' uh te vluchten'

 

'Stoltenberg (NAVO) speelt de vermoorde onschuld en doet of hij serieus wil overleggen met Rusland' (en zie de links in dat bericht!!)

'Venezuela: VS ministerie van BuZa publiceert per ongeluk een lijst met sadistische terreurdaden tegen het Venezolaanse volk'

'Joe Biden als Gandalf de brenger van het licht.... ha! ha! ha! ha! ha! ha! ha!'

'Bidens 'humane plan' voor Midden-Amerika zal bitter weinig verandering geven in de omgang met de volkeren in die regio' 

'New York Times geeft toe dat de VS sancties en niet het socialisme Venezuela de vernieling in helpen'

'Met nieuw VS 'vluchtelingenbeleid' zullen nog meer kinderen seksueel misbruikt worden.....'

'Maya vrouwen die de terreur en genocide in Guatemala overleefden vechten voor gerechtigheid'

'Honduras in de greep van VS 'vriendelijke terreur': een deel van de bevolking vlucht richting VS' (en zie de links in dat bericht!!)

'BBC met 'onafhankelijke propaganda' tegen de Venezolaanse president Maduro' (en zie de links in dat bericht!!)

'Met Joe Biden is er niets veranderd op de wereld, anders dan dat 'het Trump fascisme is weggestemd'' (en zie de links in dat bericht!!)

'Biden komt verkiezingsbeloften niet na: zo blijft de VS oorlog voeren en de genocide in Jemen steunen' (en zie de links in dat bericht)

'Biden neemt bestuurslid van wapenfabrikant Raytheon als minister van 'defensie': garantie op bloedvergieten'

 VS gaat door met uithongeren Venezolaanse volk >> de westerse wereld negeert deze afschuwelijke oorlogsmisdaad'

'Het verschil tussen totalitaire regimes en 'vrije democratieën' flinterdun en soms zelfs niet bestaand....'

Joe Bidens bescherming van de moorddadige Saoedische despoten legt andermaal de werkelijke VS buitenlandpolitiek bloot en die is niet gericht op vrede of democratie' (maar wel hypocriet kritiek hebben op de Saoedische moord op journalist Khashoggi, terwijl Biden onderzoeksjournalist Julian Assange wil laten wegrotten in de cel......)

-----------------------------------

Hier nog wat links naar berichten over VS-terreur in landen waar het niets te zoeken had en heeft:

'VS vermoordde meer dan 20 miljoen mensen sinds het einde van WOII........' (daar zijn er voor deze eeuw al weer ruim meer dan 5 miljoen aan toegevoegd......)

'VS buitenlandbeleid sinds WOII: een lange lijst van staatsgrepen en oorlogen..........'

'List of wars involving the United States'

'CIA 70 jaar: 70 jaar moorden, martelen, coups plegen, nazi's beschermen, media manipulatie enz. enz.........' (inclusief het manipuleren van verkiezingen)

Kaping Ryanair toestel zorgt voor hypocriete hysterie: waar was de verontwaardiging toen het toestel van de Boliviaanse president werd gedwongen te landen in West-Europa

Ongelofelijk, de hysterie die is ontstaan na de door een Wit-Russische (Belarussische) straaljager afgedwongen landing van een Ryanair toestel. Uiteraard is e.e.a. te gek voor woorden en een schending van meerdere verdragen, echter men 'vergeet' voor het gemak even dat iets dergelijks eerder gebeurde....... In 2013 werd het toestel, waarmee de Boliviaanse president Morales werd vervoerd van Moskou naar zijn land, gedwongen te landen daar men het vermoeden had dat Edward Snowden, een man die volkomen terecht de klok luidde over het agressieve buitenlandbeleid dat de VS voerde..... (en nog steeds voert, een beleid dat zich kenemrkt door grootschalige terreur)

Let wel: het ging hier om toestel waarin zich een democratisch gekozen president bevond en het vermoeden dat klokkenluider Snowden aan boord was, volkomen onterecht zoals we al lang weten...... Eén ding is zeker: als Snowden aan boord was geweest had men hem op zeker gearresteerd en uitgeleverd aan de VS........ Men zegt wel dat Roman Protasevich, de persoon waar het om draait is gemarteld, maar de VS doet niet anders dan mensen martelen in geheime CIA gevangenissen over de wereld en op Guantanamo Bay, op zeker dat men dit ook met Snowden had gedaan........

Ronduit komisch te zien hoe de westerse media (en politiek) de zaak steeds verder hebben opgeblazen nadat duidelijk werd dat blogger Roman Protasevich en zijn vriendin, die zich aan boord bevonden van het Ryanair toestel en eruit werden gehaald toen het toestel in Minsk (Wit-Rusland) werd gecontroleerd op een bom, de smoes waarmee men het toestel tot landen dwong. Eerst werd inderdaad gesteld dat hij -blogger was, een paar uur later was hij -journalist, daarna -oppositie-journalist (ha! ha! ha!), vervolgens de -stem van de oppositie en tot slot is hij tot de belangrijkste -dissident van Wit-Rusland gebombardeerd....... Lullig dan ook te zien dat Glenn Greenwald, van wie het hieronder opgenomen artikel is, Protasevich al bijna even hoog ophemelt..... (hoe lullig de zaak ook is)

Luisterde na 12.00 u. naar een inbelprogramma op WDR 5, een zogenaamde deskundige maakte het helemaal bont, deze kwezel stelde dat Rusland en dan m.n. president Putin de grote kracht op de achtergrond was, ook stelde hij dat het waarschijnlijk is dat er leden van de Russische geheime dienst aan boord van het Ryanair toestel waren...... ha! ha! ha! ha! ha! Het viel me alles mee dat hij niet vertelde dat één of meer van Putins secretarissen (m/v) aan boord waren....... En daar ging het los in de uitzending van WDR 5: de ene inbeller na de andere eiste naast sancties tegen Wit-Rusland ook sancties tegen Rusland en bovendien werd bijna spugend toegevoegd dat het Nord Stream2 (NS2) project, een gaspijpleiding van Rusland via de Oostzee naar Duitsland, per direct moet worden gestopt.... (terwijl heel veel huizen in Duitsland nog met olie worden warm gestookt.....)

Letterlijk één inbeller maakte zich boos om deze belachelijke stemmingmakerij en gaf aan welk land de grote agressor is op onze kleine planeet: de VS en dat men moest stoppen met deze meer dan belachelijke demonisering van Rusland, jammer dat hij niet het meer dan schandelijke voorbeeld noemde van de gedwongen landing die het toestel van Morales moest maken en niet stelde dat de grootste westelijke schande op dit gebied wel de isolatiefolter is die de gelauwerde onderzoeksjournalist Julian Assange nu al meer dan een jaar moet doormaken, vastgehouden op valse gronden en ronduit leugens van de VS overheid (uitentreuren herhaald door de 'collega's' van Assange in de reguliere westerse media) als zou hij mensen in gevaar hebben gebracht....... De kritische inbeller, die ook terecht opmerkte dat er in de gevangenissen in de VS behoorlijk wat dissidenten zitten, werd snel afgekapt in zijn verhaal en mocht in tegenstelling tot andere inbellers niets meer zeggen nadat de 'deskundige' zijn woorden tevergeefs probeerde te weerleggen......

Nogmaals wat een smerig stel hypocrieten, de wereld had op haar kop moeten staan toen het toestel van Morales moest landen en dat alleen op een vermoeden, waar men nu zelfs het gore lef heeft Rusland te beschuldigen van medeplichtigheid, maar nee dat vond men blijkbaar wel normaal....... Zelfs als Snowden aan boord was geweest had men het toestel niet tot landen mogen dwingen, alle westerse staten beleiden met de mond dat transparantie en openheid in het belang is van de democratie, behalve als het hen niet uitkomt, zie wat dat betreft ook de meer dan onbeschofte behandeling van klokkenluiders als Fred Spijkers (gevaarlijke landmijnen*) en Ad Bos (bouwfraude/corruptie schandaal)

Dit is 2021 ten voeten uit, alsof we gvd terug zijn in de 30er jaren van de vorige eeuw, oh nee dom van mij, toen probeerde iedereen Hitler en andere fascistische dictators zoals Franco te vriend te houden, terwijl men nu landen demoniseert die niets met bepaalde zaken te maken hebben en men in het westen vooral niets doet tegen de enorme balk in eigen ogen...... 

Hier het artikel van Glenn Greenwald:

As Anger Toward Belarus Mounts, Recall the 2013 Forced Landing of Bolivia's Plane to Find Snowden

What Belarus did, while illegal, is not unprecedented. The dangerous tactic was pioneered by the same U.S. and E.U. officials now righteously condemning it.

Glenn Greenwald

 

Bolivian President Evo Morales holds a press conference at the Vienna International Airport on July 3, 2013, angrily denying any wrongdoing on Wednesday after his plane was diverted to Vienna over suspicion fugitive US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden was on board. (Photo: Patrick Domingo/AFP via Getty Images)

U.S. and E.U. governments are expressing outrage today over the forced landing by Belarus of a passenger jet flying over its airspace on its way to Lithuania. The Ryanair commercial jet, which took off from Athens and was carrying 171 passengers, was just a few miles from the Lithuanian border when a Belarusian MiG-29 fighter jet ordered the plane to make a U-turn and land in Minsk, the nation's capital.

On board that Ryanair flight was a leading Belarusian opposition figure, 26-year-old Roman Protasevich, who, fearing arrest, had fled his country in 2019 to live in exile in neighboring Lithuania. The opposition figure had traveled to Athens to attend a conference on economics with Belarus’ primary opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya and was attempting to return home to Lithuania when the plane was forcibly diverted.

Protasevich, when he was teenager, became a dissident opposed to Belarus’ long-time authoritarian leader Aleksandr Lukashenko, and has only intensified his opposition in recent years. When Lukashenko last year was "re-elected” to his sixth term as president in a sham election, the largest and most sustained anti-Lukashenko protests in years erupted. Protasevich, even while in exile, was a leading oppositional voice, using an anti-Lukashenko channel on Telegram — one of the few remaining outlets dissidents have — to voice criticisms of the regime. For those activities, he was formally charged with various national security crimes, and then, last November, was placed on the official “terrorist list” by Belarus’ intelligence service (still called the "KGB” from its days as a Soviet republic).

Lukashenko's own press service said the fighter jet was deployed on orders of the leader himself, telling the Ryanair pilot that they believed there was a bomb or other threat to the plane on board. When the plane landed in Minsk, an hours-long search was conducted and found no bomb or any other instrument that could endanger the plane's safety, and the plane was then permitted to take off and land thirty minutes later at its intended destination in Lithuania. But two passengers were missing. Protasevich was quickly detained after the plane was forced to land in Minsk and is now in a Belarusian jail, where he faces a possible death sentence as a "terrorist” and/or a lengthy prison term for his alleged national security crimes. His girlfriend, traveling with him, was also detained despite facing no charges. Passengers on the flight say Protasevich began panicking when the pilot announced that the plane would land in Minsk, knowing that his fate was sealed and telling other passengers that he faces a death sentence.

Anger over this incident from American and European governments came swiftly and vehemently. “We strongly condemn the Lukashenko regime's brazen and shocking act to divert a commercial flight and arrest a journalist,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken posted on Twitter on Sunday night, adding that U.S. officials “demand an international investigation and are coordinating with our partners on next steps.”

Secretary Antony Blinken @SecBlinken

We strongly condemn the Lukashenka regime's brazen and shocking act to divert a commercial flight and arrest a journalist. We demand an international investigation and are coordinating with our partners on next steps. The United States stands with the people of Belarus.

May 23rd 2021

3,547 Retweets13,761 Likes

Because the E.U. includes as member states both the departing country of the flight (Greece) and its intended destination (Lithuania), and because Ryanair is based in another E.U. country (Ireland), its officials are expressing similar condemnations. EU Commission head Ursula von der Leyen denounced the forced landing as "outrageous and illegal behavior” and warned it “will have consequences". The leaders of Lithuania and Ireland demanded serious retaliation and sanctions. It is unclear what retaliatory options are available given the strong international sanctions regime already imposed on Lukashenko and his allies.

There is little doubt that the forced landing of this plane by Belarus, with the clear intention to arrest Protasevich, is illegal under numerous conventions and treaties governing air space. Any forced landing of a jet carries dangers, and safe international air travel would be impossible if countries could force planes flying with permission over their air space to land in order to seize passengers who might be on board. This act by Belarus merits all the condemnation it is receiving.

Yet news accounts in the West which are depicting this incident as some sort of unprecedented assault on legal conventions governing air travel and basic decency observed by law-abiding nations are whitewashing history. Attempts from U.S. officials such as Blinken and E.U. bureaucrats in Brussels to cast the Belarusians’ behavior as some sort of rogue deviation unthinkable for any law-respecting democracy are particularly galling and deceitful.

---

In 2013, the U.S. and key E.U. states pioneered the tactic just used by Lukashenko. They did so as part of a failed scheme to detain and arrest the NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden. That incident at the time caused global shock and outrage precisely because, eight years ago, it was truly an unprecedented assault on the values and conventions they are now invoking to condemn Belarus.

In July of that year, the democratically elected President of Bolivia, Evo Morales, had traveled to Russia for a routine international conference attended by countries which export natural gas. At the time of Morales’ trip, Edward Snowden was in the middle of a bizarre five-week ordeal where he was stranded in the international transit zone of Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow, unable to board a flight to leave Russia or exit the airport to enter Russia.

On June 23, Hong Kong officials rejected a demand from the U.S. Government that they arrest Snowden and hand him over to the U.S. Hong Kong was the city Snowden chose to meet the two journalists he had selected (one of whom was me) because of what he regarded as the city's noble history of fighting against repression and for independence and free expression. When announcing their refusal to hand over Snowden, Hong Kong officials issued a remarkably defiant, even mocking statement explaining that Snowden had been permitted to leave Hong Kong “on his own accord.” That statement also accused the U.S. of having issued a legally improper and inaccurate extradition demand which they were duty-bound to reject, and then pointedly noted that the real crime requiring investigation was U.S. spying on the populations of the rest of the world.

Snowden thus left Hong Kong that day with the intent to fly to Moscow, then immediately board a flight to Cuba, and then proceed to his ultimate destination in a Latin American country — Bolivia or Ecuador — in order to seek asylum there. But even after then-President Barack Obama denied that the U.S. Government would be "wheeling and dealing” in order to get Snowden into U.S. custody — “I'm not going to be scrambling jets to get a 29-year-old hacker,” he dismissively claimed during a June press conference — the U.S. Government was, in reality, doing everything in its power to prevent Snowden from evading the clutches of the U.S. Government.

Led by then-Vice President Joe Biden, U.S. officials warned every country in both Europe and South America said to be considering shelter for Snowden of grave consequences should they offer asylum to the whistleblower. Threats to Havana caused the Cuban government to rescind its commitment of safe passage they had issued to Snowden's lawyer. Under Biden's pressure, Ecuador also reversed itself by proclaiming the safe passage document issued to Snowden was a mistake.

And on the day that Snowden had left Hong Kong, the U.S. State Department unilaterally cancelled his passport, which is why, upon landing in Moscow, he was barred from boarding his next international flight, destined for Havana. With the Russian government unable to allow him to board a flight due to his invalidated passport and with Snowden's asylum requests pending both with Russia and close to two dozen other states, he was forced to remain in the airport until August 1, when Moscow finally granted him temporary asylum. He has lived there ever since. This has always been a staggering irony of the Snowden story: the primary attack on him by U.S. officials to impugn his motives and patriotism is that he lives in Russia and thus likely cooperated with Russian authorities (a claim for which no evidence has ever been presented), when the reality is that Snowden would have left Russia eight years ago after a 30-minute stay in its airport had U.S. officials not used a series of maneuvers that barred him from leaving.

(Obama's claim to not care much about Snowden was issued at roughly the same time that the U.S. and U.K. governments were engaged in other extreme acts, including sending law enforcement agents into The Guardian's London newsroom to force them to physically destroy their computers used to store their copy of the Snowden archive, as well as detaining my husband, David Miranda, under a terrorism law at Heathrow Airport, with the advanced knowledge of the Obama administration).

While in Moscow, President Morales — on July 1, the day before he was scheduled to return to Bolivia — gave an interview to a local Russian outlet in which he said Bolivia would be open to the possibility of granting asylum to Snowden. The next day, Morales boarded Bolivia's presidential jet to fly back to La Paz as scheduled, with a flight plan that including flying over several E.U. member states — including Austria, France, Spain, Italy and Portugal, as well as Poland and the Czech Republic — with a stop to refuel in Spain's Canary Islands.

The Bolivian plane flew through Poland and the Czech Republic without incident. But flight records show that while flying over Austria toward France the plane suddenly took a sharp turn to the east, back to the Austrian capital of Vienna, where it made an unscheduled landing. Morales and his entourage were stranded there for twelve hours before re-boarding the plane and flying back to Bolivia.

Bolivian officials immediately announced that in mid-flight, they were told by France, Spain and Italy that their permission to fly over those countries’ air space had been rescinded. Without enough fuel to fly an alternative route, the Bolivian pilot was forced to make a U-turn and land in Vienna. Bolivian officials were told that the reason for the mid-air refusal of these E.U. countries to allow use of their airspace was because of assurances they were given by an unspecified foreign government that Snowden was on the plane with Morales, and that he was traveling because Bolivia had granted him asylum.

After Morales’ plane was forced to land at the Vienna airport, Austrian officials quickly announced that they had searched the plane and determined that Snowden was not on it. While Bolivia denied that they consented to any such search of the presidential plane, Bolivian officials angrily mocked the notion that Snowden would be secretly smuggled by Morales from Russia to Bolivia. The whole time this was happening, Snowden was in Moscow. Needless to say, had Snowden been on Morales’ plane that was forced to land in Vienna, Austrian officials would have instantly detained him and turned him over to the U.S., which had by then issued an international arrest warrant. The only reason Snowden did not suffer the same fate that day as the one Protasevich suffered on Sunday is because he happened not to be on the targeted plane that was forced to make an unscheduled landing in Vienna.

The international outrage toward the E.U. and U.S. over the forced downing of the Bolivian presidential plane poured forth just as swiftly and intensely as the outrage now coming from those states to Belarus. Bolivia's U.N. Ambassador called it an attempted "kidnapping” — exactly the term which the states he so accused are now using for Belarus. Brazil's then-President Dilma Rousseff expressed “outrage and condemnation." Then-Argentine President Cristina Kirchner described the downing of Morales’ plane as the “vestiges of a colonialism that we thought were long over,” adding that it “constitutes not only the humiliation of a sister nation but of all South America.” Even the U.S.-dominated Organization of American States expressed its “deep displeasure with the decision of the aviation authorities of several European countries that denied the use of airspace,” adding that "nothing justifies an act of such lack of respect for the highest authority of a country."

As the controversy exploded, the key E.U. states tried at first to falsely deny that they played any role in the incident, insisting that they had not closed their airspace to Bolivia's plane. France had quickly claimed that while it had originally denied use of its airspace to the Bolivian plane while in mid-air, then-President Francois Hollande reversed that decision after he learned Morales was on board. Eventually, though, the French fully admitted the truth: “France has apologised to Bolivia after Paris admitted barring the Bolivian president's plane from entering French air space because of rumors Edward Snowden was on board.”

Meanwhile, Spain also ended up apologizing to Bolivia. Its then-Foreign Minister cryptically admitted: "They told us they were sure... that he was on board.” Though the Spanish official refused to specify who the "they” was — as if there were any doubts — he acknowledged that the assurances they got that Snowden was on board Morales’ plane was the only reason they took the actions they did to force the plane of the Bolivian leader to land. “The reaction of all the European countries that took measures - whether right or wrong - was because of the information that had been passed on. I couldn't check if it was true or not at that moment because it was necessary to act straight away,” he said. While denying Spanish authorities had fully "closed” its airspace to Morales, they acknowledged what they called "delays” in approving mid-flight air space rights forced Morales to land in Austria and apologized for this having been handled “inappropriately” by Madrid.

====================================

* Deze zaak begon met de dood van een mijnenexpert in 1984, daarvoor waren al 6 diensplichtigen omgekomen door eenzelfde type mijn, terwijl Defensie al vanaf 1970 op de hoogte was dat deze mijnen van het type AP-23 niet deugden, mijnen van het niet meer bestaande bedrijf Eurometaal (leuke naam hè voor een wapenfabrikant, een maker van oorlogstuig??)..... Duidelijk ook dat hier sprake van grote corruptie moet zijn geweest waarbij hoge militairen fiks steekgeld moeten hebben verdiend over de rug van dode militairen, in feite gaat het dan ook om moord met voorbedachte rade, die men jaren onder het tapijt heeft weten te houden......

Zie ook de volgende zeer hypocriete zaak: 'EU sprak over sancties tegen Wit-Rusland, terwijl men Brazilië en Saoedi-Arabië laat begaan met het uitvoeren van genocides' (en het westen propt de reli-fascistische staat Saoedi-Arabië nog steeds vol met wapens, óók Nederland; moet je nagaan.....) (en zie de links in dat bericht, bijvoorbeeld het bericht dat verwijst naar een artikel over nog steeds bestaande slavernij in de VS!!) 

'Snowden vindt het ongelofelijk dat de media VS politici niet aanspreken op totaal verschillende reacties n.a.v. 'klokkenluiden''

'Klokkenluidershuis zoals verwacht één grote mislukking.........' (en zie de links in dat bericht!!)

Bolivia: de staatsgreep in 2019 werd uitgevoerd door de CIA, Groot-Brittannië en de OAS met hulp van grote bedrijven

De staatsgreep in 2019 tegen de democratisch gekozen regering Morales in Bolivia was vooral ingegeven door de 'wereldhonger' naar lithium, de belangrijkste grondstof voor accu's, niet voor niets wordt lithium witgoud genoemd.

Declassified UK heeft een uitvoerig schrijven van Matt Kennard gepubliceerd (door mij overgenomen van Information Clearing House) waarin hij beschrijft welke rol Groot-Brittannië heeft gespeeld in deze smerige coup, die zoals zo vaak werd georganiseerd en geregisseerd door de CIA......

Overigens stond het hele westen inclusief de reguliere media achter deze coup, met grote graagte werden in november 2019 de leugens overgenomen van de Organisatie van Amerikaanse Staten (OAS) als zouden de zojuist gehouden verkiezingen in Bolivia zijn gestoken door de partij van Evo Morales.....(zo heeft Trouw en VPRO correspondent, zijne kwaadaardigheid Edwin Koopman, fiks lopen liegen over wat er wel en niet zou zijn gebeurd in Bolivia*) Die media en politici in het westen durfden zelfs te stellen dat er geen sprake was van een staatsgreep, maar dat Morales zelf was opgestapt na 'massale protesten' (waar het overgrote deel van het Boliviaanse volk niet aan meedeed.....), terwijl het leger hem heeft ontvoerd en met een militair vliegtuig deporteerde naar Mexico.....

Deze gang van zaken geeft ten overvloede nog eens aan dat de zogenaamde onafhankelijke (massa-) media, in handen van oligarchen en steenrijke investeringsmaatschappijen, de neoliberale status quo propageren en daar maar al te graag voor liegen (dat het gedrukt staat...)..... Schande overigens dat westerse regeringen (inclusief het disfunctionerende kabinet Rutte 3) zich achter deze coup schaarden, immers zij moeten via hun eigen geheime diensten hebben geweten dat e.e.a. op grove leugens was gebaseerd..... (zo niet zijn die geheime diensten geen knip voor de neus waard... oh wacht even, dat zijn ze 'ook niet...')

Evo Morales was de eerste president van de oorspronkelijke bewoners nadat witte psychopaten een paar eeuwen geleden het land innamen..... Hij was uiterst succesvol en heeft de arme oorspronkelijke bevolking (de meerderheid in Bolivia, dit in tegenstelling tot andere Latijns-Amerikaanse landen) uit de armoede getrokken, heeft deze bevolking verder onderwijs, medische zorg en zoveel mogelijk goede behuizing gegeven. De economie draaide prima, ondanks het nationaliseren van een aantal bedrijven door Morales, bedrijven die tegen een appel en ei de grondstoffen van Bolivia hebben gestolen...... (die nationalisaties waren mede een reden voor de staatsgreep)

Oké het was voor de mensen die verder nadenken dan de neus van de westerse media lang is al duidelijk dat hier een heel smerige staatsgreep werd uitgevoerd en waarbij schandelijk genoeg ook nog eens een aantal mensen van de oorspronkelijke bevolking werden vermoord door politie en leger, echter dat in feite de regering Johnson en de geheime dienst van Groot-Brittannië zo'n grote rol hebben gespeeld was althans voor mij een openbaring, wat een geteisem!!

Gelukkig heeft de partij van Morales de verkiezingen van 2020 ruimschoots gewonnen, echter het leed wat er werd aangericht met de coup is daarmee niet weggewist.....

Lees het artikel van Kennard en zegt het voort, daar men in het westen nog steeds volhoudt dat de coup van 2019 wettig was...... (hoe zot in je kop moet je zijn om dat te beweren.....)

Revealed: The UK supported the coup in Bolivia to gain access to its ‘white gold’

By Matt Kennard

After a coup in the South American country of Bolivia in November 2019, democratically elected president Evo Morales was forced to flee. Foreign Office documents obtained by Declassified show Britain saw the new military-backed regime, which killed 18 protesters, as an opportunity to open up Bolivia’s lithium deposits to UK firms.

• Lithium – known as ‘white gold’ – is a key metal used in batteries and increasingly important to the world car industry

• Britain’s Foreign Office appears to have paid Oxford-based company to optimise ‘exploitation’ of Bolivia’s lithium deposits the month after Morales fled country

• UK embassy acted as ‘strategic partner’ to coup regime and organised international mining event in Bolivia four months after democracy overthrown

• UK firm founded by British Army veteran was ‘now in line to offer its services’ to mining companies, Foreign Office noted after event

• UK embassy provided data for the now discredited international report which was used to justify 2019 coup

• UK embassy brought cybersecurity company with close links to the CIA to Bolivia in March 2019, eight months before the military takeover

March 09, 2021 "Information Clearing House" - On 10 November 2019, after the head of the army called for his resignation, Bolivia’s socialist president, Evo Morales, stepped down. It followed weeks of protests after the release of a report by the Organisation of American States (OAS) alleging irregularities in the election Morales had won the previous month.

Persecution from the new regime forced Morales to flee the country and an “interim president”, Jeanine Áñez, was installed. Widely condemned as a coup, resulting protests were met with lethal force.

Days after taking power, on 14 November, the Áñez regime forced through Decree 4078 which gave immunity to the military for any actions taken in “the defence of society and maintenance of public order”.

The following day, on 15 November, Bolivian military forces shot and killed eight protesters in the city of Sacaba. On 21 November, regime forces killed another 10 protesters in the neighbourhood of Senkata just outside the capital La Paz.

Despite the deadly violence, which was condemned by human rights groups, the British embassy in La Paz moved quickly to support Bolivia’s new regime, Declassified can reveal from documents we have obtained.

We have seen a project list for a Foreign Office programme in Bolivia called “Frontline Diplomatic Enabling Activity”, which the UK government describes as a “small pot of money that [embassies] receive and have authority over to spend on projects supporting [embassy] activity”.

‘Interim President’ of Bolivia Jeanine Añez speaks during a press conference at the presidential palace on 15 November 2019 in La Paz, Bolivia. (Photo: Gaston Brito Miserocchi / Getty Images)

The deposits

Bolivia has the world’s second-largest reserves of lithium, a metal that is used to make batteries and which has become increasingly important due to the burgeoning electric car industry.

The UK government has stated that lithium battery technology is a priority for its “industrial strategy”. In June 2019, it announced it was investing £23-million in “electric car battery development”.

The government has further noted: “It’s estimated that South America holds 54% of the world’s lithium resources, which are increasingly in demand to manufacture batteries for electric vehicles and energy diversification programmes.”

It added: “The UK aims to have a thriving, sustainable battery industry, which would translate to a £2.7 billion opportunity … and our bilateral partnerships are essential to ensure this.”

In February 2019, Evo Morales’ government had chosen a Chinese consortium to be its strategic partner on a new $2.3-billion lithium project which would focus on production from the Coipasa and Pastos Grandes salars (salt flats under which the lithium is deposited).

But after the coup, the regime’s new minister for mining cast doubt on whether the deal would be honoured by the new government.

These particular salt flats were of interest to the UK embassy.

One project it co-funded from 2019-20 sought to “optimise Bolivia’s lithium exploration and production (in the Coipasa and Pastos Grandes salars) using British technology”.

After the coup, this project was quickly moved forward.

The abstract for the project was authorised by its main funder – the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) – on 25 November 2019, two weeks after the coup and days after the Senkata massacre.

The project gained full approval for funding of $100,000 weeks later, in mid-December 2019.

The IADB told Declassified: “The implementation of [grant] activities are conducted in close coordination with designated government authorities and their technical teams.” At that point its “close coordination” would have been with the Áñez regime.

A woman shouts anti-regime slogans in front of a police line during a funeral procession of the victims killed during clashes with police at the Senkata fuel plant on 21 November 2019 in La Paz, Bolivia. (Photo: Gaston Brito Miserocchi / Getty Images)

Satellite Applications Catapult

The British embassy in La Paz provided £5,000 towards this lithium project in 2019-20, but the Foreign Office refused to tell Declassified if these funds were disbursed after the coup in November 2019.

The goal was to “design and implement a satellite data-based application that can optimise exploration and exploitation of large/best lithium sources in the Coipasa and Pastos Grandes salars in Bolivia”, the documents outlined.

The Foreign Office noted that the project was to be implemented by Satellite Applications Catapult, an Oxford-based organisation “helping organisations harness the power of satellite-based services”.

The company receives about a third of its funding from the UK government but it did not respond to Declassified’s questions about the Bolivia project.

However, we found that on 19 December 2019 – two days after the IABD gave final approval to the project – the UK Foreign Office transferred £33,220 to Satellite Applications Catapult, in a payment listed as “programme spend”.

The department refused to tell Declassified if this funding was for the lithium exploitation project in Bolivia. The IADB told us: “Coordination with the British Embassy has been particularly cooperative in search for synergies”.

A picture of the Coipasa salt flats in Bolivia, photographed by an Expedition 33 crew member on the International Space Station. (Photo: Nasa)

International seminar

Then, in March 2020, four months after the coup, the British embassy in La Paz partnered with the regime’s Ministry of Mining to organise an “international seminar” for more than 300 officials from the global extractives sector.

A British company, Watchman, was brought in by the UK embassy to give the keynote presentation and outline the “creative solutions” it had enacted in Africa to bring local communities onside with mining projects.

The Foreign Office documents note: “Watchman UK and other consultancies are now in line to offer services in this important field to a number of Bolivia mining companies who wish to achieve win-win solutions to their controversies with indigenous inhabitants and towns located in the area of influence of their activities”.

Watchman is a risk management company set up in 2016 by Christopher Goodwin-Hudson, a nine-year veteran of the British Army who was later executive director of global security for the investment bank Goldman Sachs.

The company supports corporate clients “across the extractive, agribusiness and capital project sectors” who are having trouble operating because of local resistance. Watchman’s website carries the logo of the UK Foreign Office.

The firm’s associate director, Gabriel Carter, has held a number of senior roles in the private security industry and in 2012 founded an Afghanistan-focused security company that “supported numerous British and US development projects”.

Carter, also a veteran of risk management at Goldman Sachs, is a member of the Special Forces Club, an exclusive and secretive private members’ club for senior intelligence and special forces veterans in Knightsbridge, London.

Watchman did not respond to Declassified’s questions about the event and the UK Foreign Office refused to answer questions related to it.

Voor deze documenten waar ik vreemd genoeg geen werkende link kan maken naar het PDF zie het origineel op Declassified UK. (en veiligheidsgordels vast voor je gaat lezen!!)

UK Foreign Office documents from 2015-20 documenting a range of programmes run by the British embassy in Bolivia.

A long courtship 

The quick moves of the British embassy on the lithium project followed years of trying to court Bolivia’s socialist government over the country’s reserves of the metal, the new documents show.

Morales had moved Bolivia away from the country’s traditional reliance on Western corporations since taking power in 2006. His government was widely praised for reducing poverty and increasing investment in schools, hospitals and infrastructure.

The Foreign Office notes that its “first engagement with the Bolivian Lithium Company”, known by its Spanish acronym YLB, was in 2017-18 when it paid £31,500 to organise a scientific UK mission. It focused on training the YLB on new technologies to explore and produce lithium in a “sustainable” way.

The documents note this project “allowed British organisations … to carry over projects on lithium in Bolivia with [Inter-American Development Bank] and [UK government] funding in the following years”.

The UK government noted: “Relationship with the Bolivian Lithium Company might also prove relevant as Bolivia becomes a supplier of lithium (a critical material) to the UK”, and referenced its “effort to connect Bolivia, Chile and Argentina (ie the Lithium Triangle) with the London Metal Exchange”.

The following year’s programme notes that “stronger links” developed between the YLB and the British embassy in Bolivia.

The documents also outline how in April 2019, the British embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina, hosted a “high-level technical meeting” with the mining and lithium authorities of Argentina, Chile and Bolivia, as well as senior representatives of the London Metal Exchange.

Those three countries together share ownership of the “lithium triangle”, the region of the Andes rich in lithium reserves. At the time Argentina and Chile had right-wing governments friendly with the UK.

Also in attendance was Bolivia’s vice-minister of lithium and the chief executive of YLB. “The project from the British Embassy in Bolivia … consisted in securing and facilitating the presence of the Bolivian authorities in the meeting”, the Foreign Office documents note.

It added that, after the meeting, the Bolivian government was now “aware of the relevance of the London Metal Exchange” and particularly “its interest to establish a lithium standard” which was to be based upon the lithium triangle production. Such standards serve “to promote understanding and communication between metal producers and users”.

The following sections in this passage are redacted under two exemptions related to “international relations” and “commercial interests”. These are the only redactions made on the programme documentation for the five years of operations seen by Declassified.

The London Metal Exchange, the world centre for industrial metals trading. (Photo: UK government)

Darktrace

There is further evidence Britain was always priming the country for a change in government. In the year before the coup, the British embassy was promoting the UK cyber sector, bringing a company to Bolivia founded by the UK intelligence community, and with close links to America’s Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

In 2009, Morales had expelled a US diplomat who he claimed was a CIA asset heading an operation to infiltrate Bolivia’s state-owned oil company.

Eight months before the coup, the UK embassy spent more than £4,500 organising a “major event” in Laz Paz on cybersecurity for financial institutions, attended by 150 executives and senior officials from the Bolivian financial sector, according to the Foreign Office documents.

Delivered in coordination with the Bolivian Stock Exchange, Bolivian banks were said to “now be acquiring specialised services to protect their systems from cybercrime”. Further, the bankers were now aware that fighting cybercrime had to be “based upon adequate and state-of-the-art technology”.

Presentations were delivered by British company Darktrace, a cybersecurity firm set up by Britain’s domestic security service, MI5, and its signals intelligence agency, GCHQ. The company was incorporated the day after the first of whistle-blower Edward Snowden’s exposures was published in The Guardian.

Since its founding, Darktrace has hired personnel from the US intelligence community, including directly from the CIA and the National Security Agency, where Snowden used to work.

Recruits from the CIA

Alan Wade, who sits on Darktrace’s advisory council, is a 35-year veteran of the CIA and its former chief information officer.

Darktrace also recruited Marcus Fowler, a former US Marine and 15-year veteran of the CIA, as its “director of strategic threat”. At the CIA, Fowler worked on “developing global cyber operations and technical strategies” and “conducted nearly weekly briefings for senior US officials”, he says.

In July 2013, Evo Morales’ presidential plane was grounded in Austria after US intelligence agencies suspected it had Snowden on board.

Bolivian President Evo Morales (C) speaks to the media at the airport in Vienna, Austria, 3 July 2013. Morales’ plane landed in Vienna after the aircraft was denied access to French and Portuguese airspace over suspicions that US whistleblower Edward Snowden was on board. (Photo: Helmut Fohringer/EPA)

Morales blamed the US and other international actors for the November 2019 coup. “It was a national and international coup d’état,” he said soon after. “Industrialised countries don’t want competition.” He added: “I’m absolutely convinced it’s a coup against lithium.”  

The WikiLeaks diplomatic cables show that the US embassy in La Paz worked closely with the political opposition in Bolivia to remove the Morales government after it took power in 2006.

Morales expelled the US Drug Enforcement Agency in 2008 and the US Agency for International Development in 2013, accusing them of “conspiring” against his government.

For the March 2019 event, the UK embassy also brought an expert from the London-based think tank Chatham House, whose co-president is Eliza Manningham-Buller, a former director-general of MI5.

Its funders include the US State Department, UK Foreign Office, the British Army, and the oil companies BP and Chevron.

After the event, Britain’s Foreign Office noted that “several companies in the field [are] now being hired and consulted”. It is not known if Darktrace was one of them.

The embassy kept up the engagement soon after. “New dialogue with the Bolivian government on cyber”, notes the Foreign Office in its 2019-2020 programme. It is unclear if this referred to the coup regime.

‘Important input’

The day after the Bolivian election on 20 October 2019, the Washington-based Organisation of American States – the grouping of countries in North and South America – released a report on the vote which Morales had marginally won. It cited “an inexplicable change” that “drastically modifies the fate of the election”.

It also raised doubts about the fairness of the vote and fuelled a chain of events that led to the November coup.

However, a subsequent study by independent researchers using data obtained by The New York Times from the Bolivian electoral authorities found that the OAS statistical analysis was flawed.

Its conclusion that Morales’ share of the vote jumped inexplicably in the final ballots relied on incorrect data and inappropriate statistical techniques, the researchers found.

Declassified can now reveal that the British embassy provided data for the OAS’s discredited report.

The British embassy spent £8,000 putting together an alliance of civil society organisations which “coordinated an operation for citizens’ observation of the elections in 2019”.

This alliance carried out a survey on voting intentions before the elections, which “was an important input for the OAS mission report, which identified irregularities in the process”, the Foreign Office notes.

The OAS failed to respond to Declassified’s questions about the UK embassy’s role in its discredited report and the Foreign Office refused to answer any questions about it.

The British embassy’s projects to prepare for the election went even further. In February 2019, it spent £9,981 to bring the Thomson Reuters Foundation to the country to train 30 Bolivian journalists on “verification techniques and pre-planning an election on coverage that is balanced, accurate and free of polarisation”. 

The Foundation said that “ahead of the elections in Bolivia” it was teaching “practical skills and tools to recognise fake news and attempts to influence the electorate with false information”.  

Declassified previously revealed how the British government is using journalism as an influencing tool in Latin America. Also recently revealed was that the British government secretly funded Reuters in the 1960s and 1970s at the behest of an anti-Soviet propaganda unit linked to British intelligence.

‘Marxist solidarity’

Days after the November coup in Bolivia, the UK Foreign Office released a statement saying: “The United Kingdom congratulates Jeanine Áñez on taking on her new responsibilities as interim President of Bolivia.” It added: “We welcome Ms Áñez’ appointment and her declared intention to hold elections soon.”

UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab arrives at 10 Downing Street on 3 February 2021 in London. (Photo: Hollie Adams / Getty Images)

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab stated: “We hope that the current crisis in Bolivia can now be resolved swiftly, peacefully and in a democratic way. The Bolivian people deserve to have the opportunity to vote in free and fair elections.”

Then Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn offered a completely different view, saying: “I condemn this coup against the Bolivian people and stand with them for democracy, social justice and independence.”

Raab proceeded to attack Corbyn, quote-tweeting him and stating: “Unbelievable. The Organisation of American States refused to certify the Bolivian election because of systemic flaws. The people are protesting and striking on an unprecedented scale. But @jeremycorbyn puts Marxist solidarity ahead of democracy.”

But Raab and the Foreign Office made no further comments as the new regime’s forces carried out the Sacaba and Senkata massacres the following week.

Jeff Glekin, Britain’s ambassador to Bolivia since January 2019. (Photo: UK government)

In March 2020, four months after Morales was overthrown, the new regime was organising a series of new initiatives “with the UK as a strategic partner”, the documents note.

That same month, Britain’s ambassador during the coup, Jeff Glekin, offered a glimpse of the UK interests involved in backing the new regime.

Glekin spoke to the Bolivian media about British Week, which was bringing 12 British companies to the country for the first time.

“Many are looking for new markets in the world and Bolivia can be an opportunity to grow,” he said. “Due to the political changes in Bolivia, a more open environment for foreign investment is perceived and I believe that this will open new doors to companies that want to share their technology, their products and make alliances with different companies.”

Glekin, who remains in post, added: “We are working with the Santa Cruz Mayor’s Office … and we invite Santa Cruz corporations to participate in the event.”

In the documents seen by Declassified, a disproportionately high number of UK embassy projects have focused on the eastern city of Santa Cruz, which was the centre of opposition to Evo Morales’ government.

Glekin continued: “The previous government was not very in favour of foreign investment. So, with the changes that we are going to see, it will be easier to enter the market and do business. The companies to come are from different parts of Great Britain and from various sectors. They are modern firms that are doing innovative things and want to enter the market and share their services and products in Bolivia.”

Glekin added: “The demand for lithium is growing and Bolivia must take advantage of that opportunity.”

When new elections took place in October 2020, Evo Morales’ Movimiento al Socialismo won 55% of the votes against six rivals on the ballot, easily avoiding the need for a runoff. The runner-up was former President Carlos Mesa with just under 29%.

A Foreign Office spokesperson told Declassified: “Presidential elections held in Bolivia in October 2020 were free and fair. There was no coup. The UK has a strong and constructive relationship with current and former Bolivian administrations.” DM

Matt Kennard is head of investigations at Declassified UK, an investigative journalism organisation that covers the UK’s role in the world. 

Follow Declassified on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. Sign up to receive Declassified’s monthly newsletter here. You can become a member and supporter of Declassified by visiting here.

Click for Spanish, German, Dutch, Danish, French, translation- Note- Translation may take a moment to load.

========================================
 

* Zie ook wat Edwin Koopman heeft durven zeggen over deze coup: 'Bolivia: een jaar na de coup wint de socialistische partij alsnog de verkiezingen' Met daarin hetvolgende plus link naar een bericht van Trouw met daarin een voorbeeld van foute berichtgeving over Bolivia, geschreven door de neoliberale fantast Edwin Koopman (werkt ook voor de VPRO) die een uiterst gekleurd verslag gaf over de situatie voorafgaand aan de verkiezingen in Bolivia, waarbij hij verzweeg dat de OAS de coup van 2019 organiseerde op basis van de uitslagen (waarbij Koopman de overwinning van Morales als dubieus durfde neer te zetten) Zie ook andere fratsen van Koopman door op het label met zijn naam te klikken, direct onder dit bericht....): 'Bij de verkiezingen in Bolivia worden de kandidaten met stenen bekogeld en gaan aanhangers met elkaar op de vuist'

 Zie verder 'Bolivia: de coup is voorbij, tijd om secretaris-generaal Almagro van de OAS af te zetten en te berechten'

'Amnesty, Human Rights Watch, en massamedia doodstil over moord op journalisten in Bolivia' 

'Bolivia: CIA en OAS hebben op valse gronden een coup tegen de Boliviaanse president Morales opgezet'

'Bolivia: OAS heeft gelogen over verkiezingen: Evo Morales onterecht afgezet middels staatsgreep!'

'Bolivia: de coup heeft alles te maken met grondstoffen' 

'NOS liegt weer over Evo Morales (Boliviaanse president) die met coup werd afgezet'

'Bolivia coup een 'CIA job', aldus anonieme Duitse veiligheidsanalist, met lessen voor de toekomst'

'Bolivia: misdadigers die vechten voor het kapitalisme'

The US EMBASSY in Bolivia continues carrying out covert actions to support the coup d’état against President Evo Morales. 

'NOS met fake news over Bolivia'

'Bolivianen eisen hun president terug'

'Bolivia: staatsgreep maakt eind aan succesvol presidentschap Evo Morales'

'Bolivia: bewijs op tafel dat VS aanstuurt op een coup''

Bolivia's Evo Morales 'unhurt' after helicopter emergency landing

Bolivia Closes 2018 Among The Highest Economic Growth Rates

Bolivia’s Remarkable Socialist Success Story: President Evo Morales has transformed his country’s economy with an unapologetically left-wing agenda.

 

'NAVO gaat VS helpen in Zuid-Amerika terreur uit te oefenen: Colombia lid van de NAVO........'

'VS couppleger in Venezuela belooft VS Venezolaanse olie als hij de macht heeft overgenomen' 

'Halliburton en Chevron hebben groot belang bij 'regime change' in Venezuela' (zie de links in dat bericht naar meer artikelen over Venezuela)

'9 'ex-FARC rebellen' vermoord door leger Colombia: FARC-EP opgericht'

'Mensenrechten- en milieuactivisten worden massaal vermoord in Brazilië en Colombia, waar het laatste land NAVO bases heeft.......'

'Koenders heeft vrijlating gegijzelde Spoorloos makers in Colombia bewerkstelligt....... AUW!!!'

'Paus Franciscus in Colombia om vrede te prediken......'

'People of Brazil: my sincere condolences with 'your' fascistic, psychopathic president Bolsonaro......'

'VS commando's vechten o.a. in Midden- en Zuid-Amerika, aldus het VS ministerie van oorlog.........'

'NAVO naar Zuid-Amerika? Weg met dit agressieve, terroristische bondgenootschap, NU!!!'

'Bolton geeft toe dat de VS een fascistisch beleid voert......'

'Bolsonaro, de fascistische nieuwe president van Brazilië, werd volgens Avaaz en fake news brengers als de NYT gekozen door manipulatie via WhatsApp'

'Bolsonaro wint Braziliaanse verkiezingen >> weer zijn we een fascistisch geleid land 'rijker...''

'Braziliaanse verkiezingen: democratie versus (neo-) fascisme, ook een groot gevaar in Europa'

'Katy Sherriff (Radio1 correspondent Z-Amerika) brandt socialistische partij Brazilië af......' (Sherriff was destijds correspondent voor de zogenaamd onafhankelijke NOS (!!), ze beschuldigde o.a. Lula da Silva, de voormalige socialistische president van Brazilie af als corrupt, toevallig werd afgelopen week, het is nu 13 maart 2021, bekend gemaakt dat Lula is vrijgesproken door het Hooggerechtshof in Brazilie!! Sherriff is nu werkzaam voor...: Amnesty International >> hoe is het gvd mogelijk..??!!!)