The New Dark Age

27 February 2012 — Stop NATO News

• Turkey Says Military Intervention In Syria Discussed In Tunis
• Civilians Flee As Turkish Artillery Pounds Northern Iraq
• Russian Bombers Over Black Sea Amid Syria, Iran Crises
• Drones, Anti-Aircraft, Missile Defense: $1.6 Billion Israeli-Azeri Deal
• U.S. Soldier, Afghan Civilian Killed As Protests Grow
• Germany Pulls Advisers Out Of Afghan Ministries
• Afghan Officials Cancel U.S. Visit: Pentagon
• Russia Concerned About U.S. Creating New Military Bases In Central Asia
• Qatari Prime Minister: Arm Syrian Rebels, Intervene Militarily
• Russia Dismisses “Friends Of Syria” Meeting In Tunisia

Turkey Says Military Intervention In Syria Discussed In Tunis

http://en.trend.az/regions/met/turkey/1996904.html

Trend News Agency February 27, 2012

Turkey: All options against Syria on the table

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Davutoglu also said the second Friends of Syria meeting will take place in Turkey, while a third is planned to take place in France. Turkey, along with Tunisia and France, chaired Friday’s meeting on Syria’s political and humanitarian crisis.

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Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, commenting on the international conference on Syria held in Tunis last week, has said the international community debated all possible courses of action for ending the ongoing violence in the neighboring country, including the possibility of a military intervention, Today’s Zaman reported.

Wrapping up talks after the first meeting of the Friends of Syria in Tunisia on Friday, Davutoglu said Turkey would take part in international initiatives against the Syrian regime. He added, “All possible scenarios, including military intervention, have been discussed by a number of countries as a solution [to ending the bloodshed] in Syria.”

“Even though Turkey does not want to see Syria in a situation similar to the Libyan civil war [following the NATO intervention in 2011], the upcoming period in Syria poses many risks for the region,” Davutoglu continued, adding that Turkey should be prepared for any possible decisions made by the international community.

“The international community should not hold back from taking initiatives to alleviate the humanitarian situation in Syria, even though the UN Security Council has been blocked from providing a solution due to Russia and China’s vetoes,” Davutoglu said. The Feb. 4 decision by Russia and China to veto a UN resolution calling on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step aside angered the international community.

Davutoglu highlighted that Turkey has started to strongly voice its opinions on diplomatic issues over the last decade after taking a back seat on regional and global issues in the past, including the Minsk process, an Azerbaijani-Armenian reconciliation process over Nagorno-Karabakh; the Dayton peace process, reconciling Serbs, Bosniaks and Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina; and talks on the future of Iraq in the post-Saddam Hussein period. “Turkey has started pulling its diplomatic weight in the international arena. Turkey will have a say in regional and global issues, including Somalia and Syria.”

During an international conference in London over the future of Somalia on Feb. 23, Turkish aid initiatives in the East African country were lauded. Turkey will host the second conference on the famine and terrorism-stricken country in June. Davutoglu also said the second Friends of Syria meeting will take place in Turkey, while a third is planned to take place in France. Turkey, along with Tunisia and France, chaired Friday’s meeting on Syria’s political and humanitarian crisis.

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The Friends of Syria conference held in Tunisia on Feb. 24 gathered together countries supporting the Arab League’s position…The United States, EU governments, Arab League countries and Turkey were all represented by delegations at the conference.

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Civilians Flee As Turkish Artillery Pounds Northern Iraq

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-02/27/c_131434333.htm

Xinhua News Agency February 27, 2012

Turkish artillery pounds Iraqi border areas

BAGHDAD: The Turkish artillery Monday pounded border areas inside Iraq forcing civilians to leave their villages in Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdish region, an official Kurdish website reported.

“The Turkish artillery renewed its bombardment at 9:30 a.m. ( 0630 GMT) on villages in Sidkan border area (in Duhok province),” said the official website of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), a major Kurdish party headed by Iraq President Jalal Talabani.

Residents in the village of Litani in Sidkan said that the Turkish artillery heavily bombed areas around their village, prompting them to leave their homes to safer areas inside the Kurdish region, the Kurdish website said.

Turkish troops sporadically carry out incursions, air strikes and artillery shelling into bordering areas in Iraq’s northern Kurdish region in attempts to curb the outlawed Kurdish Workers’ Party (PKK) rebels believed to be holed up in mountainous areas in northern Iraq.

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Russian Bombers Over Black Sea Amid Syria, Iran Crises

http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=136922

Sofia News Agency February 23, 2012

Russian Bombers over Black Sea Alert Bulgarian, Turkish Air Forces

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When asked why no Bulgarian fighter jets on duty were flew off over the Russian bombers, the Bulgarian Defense Ministry is quoted as saying that it is up to NATO’s southern command to decide whose fighter jets would be sent in the air in similar situations. Observers have been quick to link the flying over of Russian strategic bombers over the Black Sea with the naval drills of the Russian Navy over the international tensions around the situation in Syria…and Iran…

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Five Russian strategic bombers have raised alert with the Bulgarian and Turkish Air Forces after flying close by over the Black Sea on Wednesday.

The five Russian Tu-22 bombers were detected right off Bulgaria’s coast, on the fringes of the Bulgarian air space, the Standart daily reported Thursday, saying that the information has been confirmed by sources from the Bulgarian Defense Ministry.

The Bulgarian military has explained, however, that the Russian bombers never entered Bulgaria’s air space, even though they reached within 40 km of the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, apparently bound south, towards Africa.

At the same time, however, the Russian bombers are reported to have caused alarmed the Turkish Air Force, with unofficial information saying that the Turkish military immediate flew two F-16 fighters to escort the Russian bombers.

When asked why no Bulgarian fighter jets on duty were flew off over the Russian bombers, the Bulgarian Defense Ministry is quoted as saying that it is up to NATO’s southern command to decide whose fighter jets would be sent in the air in similar situations.

Observers have been quick to link the flying over of Russian strategic bombers over the Black Sea with the naval drills of the Russian Navy over the international tensions around the situation in Syria…and Iran, whose nuclear program advance is fueling fears it might be subject to air strikes by Israel and/or the USA.

A group of Russian naval ships arrived in early January in the Syrian port of Tartus, where two Iranian warships also came last week.

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Drones, Anti-Aircraft, Missile Defense: $1.6 Billion Israeli-Azeri Deal

http://www.todayszaman.com/news-272524-israel-inks-16-billion-arms-deal-with-azerbaijan.html

Today’s Zaman/Associated Press February 26, 2012

Israel inks $1.6 billion arms deal with Azerbaijan

JERUSALEM: Israeli defense officials on Sunday confirmed $1.6 billion in deals to sell drones as well as anti-aircraft and missile defense systems to Azerbaijan, bringing sophisticated Israeli technology to the doorstep of archenemy Iran.

The sales by state-run Israel Aerospace Industries come at a delicate time. Israel has been laboring hard to form diplomatic alliances in a region that seems to be growing increasingly hostile to the Jewish state.

…Israeli leaders have hinted broadly that they would be prepared to attack Iranian nuclear facilities…

Iran denies Israeli and Western claims it seeks to develop atomic weapons, and says its disputed nuclear program is designed to produce energy and medical isotopes.

In Jerusalem, Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said Iran’s nuclear program will take center stage in his upcoming talks with U.S. and Canadian leaders. Netanyahu is to meet with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper in Ottawa on Friday and with President Barack Obama in Washington on Monday.

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It was not clear whether the arms deal with Azerbaijan was connected to any potential Israeli plans to strike Iran. The Israeli defense officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not at liberty to discuss defense deals.

Danny Yatom, a former head of Israel’s Mossad spy agency, said…Israel would continue to sell arms to its friends. “If it will help us in challenging Iran, it is for the better,” he said.

Israel’s ties with Azerbaijan, a Muslim country that became independent with the disintegration of the Soviet Union, have grown…

For Israeli intelligence, there is also a possible added benefit from Azerbaijan: Its significant cross-border contacts and trade with Iran’s large ethnic Azeri community.

For that same reason, as Iran’s nuclear showdown with the West deepens, the Islamic Republic sees the Azeri frontier as a weak point, even though both countries are mostly Shiite Muslim.

Earlier this month, Iran’s foreign ministry accused Azerbaijan of allowing the Israeli spy agency Mossad to operate on its territory and providing a corridor for “terrorists” to kill members of Iranian nuclear scientists.

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U.S. Soldier, Afghan Civilian Killed As Protests Grow

http://en.trend.az/regions/world/afghanistan/1996871.html

Deutsche Presse-Agentur February 26, 2012

US soldier, Afghan killed in fresh Koran protests as Karzai calls for calm

One US soldier and an Afghan protester were killed in the latest violence on the sixth day of Koran burning protests criss-crossing Afghanistan, despite another plea for calm by President Hamid Karzai, dpa reported.

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Meanwhile, one US soldier and one Afghan protester were killed Sunday in a hand grenade attack in northern Afghanistan during a protest against Koran burning, officials said.

“Twenty thousand people took to the streets in Imam Saheb District in the northern province of Kunduz to protest against the burning of the Koran,” Sayed Sarwar Hussaini, the provincial deputy police chief said.

“The protesters tried to storm a military base of the international forces in the district. Some of the protesters were armed and threw hand grenades inside the base, resulting in the death of one US soldier and one Afghan protester,” Hussaini said, adding six US soldiers were also injured.

Fifteen Afghan policemen, including the district police chief, were injured, he said.

The NATO-led coalition confirmed that an explosion had occurred in an ISAF installation in northern Afghanistan, but said there were no fatalities.

More than 32 people, including five US soldiers, have already been killed in violent protests sparked by the Koran-burning incident earlier in the week, which US officials have called a mistake.

On Saturday, two US military advisers were shot dead inside the Afghan Interior Ministry building in Kabul.

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Following the killing, NATO-led international forces recalled their personnel working at various Afghan ministries.

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Germany Pulls Advisers Out Of Afghan Ministries

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-02/27/c_122756064.htm

Xinhua News Agency February 27, 2012

Germany pulls advisors out of Afghan ministries

BERLIN: The German government said Sunday that it has ordered some 50 German and international experts working in Afghan ministries and authorities to withdraw from Kabul, in response to recent anti-U.S. unrest over the burning of Korans at a U.S. military base.

The decision of withdrawal was made by the Risk Management Office and was a “reasonable precautionary measure,” German Economic Cooperation and Development Minister Dirk Niebel said in a statement.

Niebel said once the situation calmed down, these experts and staff, who worked with Afghan authorities and made advice on the country’s reconstruction and development, would come back to work.

On Saturday, two American members of NATO forces were shot dead in the Afghan Interior Ministry in Kabul. The Taliban has claimed responsibility for the shootings, which were among a series of violence and demonstrations following the burning of Korans by some U.S. soldiers at a military base near Kabul on Feb. 20.

Thousands of outraged Afghan protesters took to the streets last week in Kabul and other major cities and at least 27 people have been killed in the demonstrations…

Germany has withdrawn around 50 German soldiers earlier than planned from a northern Afghanistan base in Taluqan city on Thursday, after about 300 people had been demonstrating outside the base. The German forces had been due to leave Afghanistan by the end of March.

Germany has some 4,600 troops stationed in Afghanistan, the third largest contingent of NATO’s International Security Assistance Force behind the United States and Britain.

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Afghan Officials Cancel U.S. Visit: Pentagon

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-02/27/c_131432710.htm

Xinhua News Agency/Agence France-Presse February 27, 2012

Afghan ministers cancel US visit: Pentagon

WASHINGTON: Afghanistan’s defense and interior ministers have canceled a visit to Washington next week to concentrate on addressing security concerns back home, the Pentagon said Sunday.

US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta “understands why that’s a priority and why they are unable to travel to Washington in the coming days,” Pentagon spokesman George Little said in a statement sent to AFP.

The pair had been scheduled to meet with the secretary on Thursday, but were staying in Afghanistan in the wake of violence sparked by a recent Koran burning incident at a US base.

“Senior Afghan officials, including the defense and interior ministers, are consulting this week with others in the Afghan government and Afghan religious leaders on how to protect ISAF personnel and quell violence in the country,” Little said.

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NATO pulled all its advisors out of government ministries after the shooting deaths Saturday, blamed on a rogue Afghan intelligence official and claimed by the Taliban as a response to the Koran burning.

The toll since the incident at Bagram airbase north of Kabul, which inflamed anti-Western sentiment already smoldering in Afghanistan over abuses by US-led foreign troops, rose Sunday to more than 30.

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Nearly 90,000 US troops remain deployed in Afghanistan, propping up the government of Western-backed President Hamid Karzai…

Top Afghan officials and American commanders have suggested the United States will likely retain a military presence in Afghanistan after 2014, when Afghan army and police are due to take over security for the whole country.

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Russia Concerned About U.S. Creating New Military Bases In Central Asia

http://www.interfax.com/newsinf.asp?pg=5&id=312370

Interfax February 27, 2012

Russia is concerned about U.S. activities to create military bases in Central Asia

MOSCOW: Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is concerned about the U.S. plans to create military bases in Central Asia “without a clear mandate.”

In his article entitled, “Russia and the Changing World,” published in Moskovskiye Novosti, Putin said that “the international military contingent under the aegis of NATO in Afghanistan has not fulfilled its tasks and the terrorist and drug threats coming from the country are not decreasing.”

Putin pointed out that “having announced its departure from the country in 2014, the Americans are creating military bases there and in the neighboring countries without a clear mandate, goals, and time frameworks.”

“Clearly, we don’t like that,” Putin said.

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Qatari Prime Minister: Arm Syrian Rebels, Intervene Militarily

http://english.ruvr.ru/2012_02_27/67009368/

Reuters February 27, 2012

Qatar PM calls for arming Syrian rebels

The international community should provide arms to Syria’s opposition and Arab countries should take the lead in providing a safe haven for rebels inside Syria, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani said on Monday.

“I think we should do whatever is necessary to help them, including giving them weapons to defend themselves,” the prime minister said during a visit to Norway.

While the West has dismissed talk of a Libya-style NATO role to support the opponents of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Gulf Arab states have pushed for a more forceful stance. Saudi Arabia said on Friday it would back the idea of arming rebels.

The Qatari prime minister said that Arab countries should take part in an international military effort to stop the bloodshed in Syria after 11 months of insurrection against Assad in which thousands have been killed.

“Since we failed in the Security Council to do something, I think we have to try to do something to send enough military help to stop the killing,” he said.

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Russia Dismisses “Friends Of Syria” Meeting In Tunisia

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-02/27/c_131434479.htm

Xinhua News Agency February 27, 2012

Russia dismisses Friends of Syria meeting

MOSCOW: The Friends of Syria meeting held at the weekend in Tunisia had failed to facilitate a settlement of the Syrian crisis, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Monday.

The meeting was “unilateral” and did not help create conditions for a national dialogue in Syria, Lavrov told a press conference after talks with visiting Myanmar counterpart Wunna Maung Lwin.

Lavrov said Russia “did not understand the status of the document” distributed by the delegates from the Friends of Syria group.

He said Moscow would continue to work for a ceasefire as soon as possible to prevent civilian deaths.

He also welcomed Sunday’s referendum on a new constitution in Syria, hailing it “a movement toward democracy.”

Any new amendments to the Syrian constitution were not a prerogative of external forces, he said.

Delegates from 60 countries and organizations, including the United States, European and Arab nations, and the Syrian opposition, were invited to the Friends of Syria conference, hosted by Tunisia. However, the conference shut its door to the Syrian government.

Russia and China did not attend the meeting.

Damascus rejected and condemned all decisions and comments by the meeting.