PressTV: Iran warns against Syria talks violating Vienna agreement

Thu Dec 3, 2015 9:52AM

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian

A senior Iranian official has warned against any meetings outside the provisions of the recent agreement reached in the Austrian capital, Vienna, on the crisis in Syria.

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said on Wednesday night that any “sideline talks” on the Syrian crisis in Saudi Arabia or Jordan constitute a violation of the Vienna agreement.

He further noted that such moves will only derail the political attempts meant to solve the Syrian conflict.

Amir-Abdollahian also stressed the need to abstain from hasty measures on Syria, stating that Vienna negotiations present an opportunity to combat terrorism and pursue a political process for the Syrian crisis. He said some parties are trying to undermine this diplomatic endeavor through actions not included in Vienna accord.

The Iranian official further pointed out that the fate of Syria should be decided by Syrians themselves, adding that the fight against terrorism needs a strong resolve on the part of all world states.

The remarks come as Saudi Arabia has issued invitations to 65 Syrian opposition figures to attend a conference in Riyadh next week. No date has yet been set for the Riyadh meeting, but unnamed sources say it could take place next week. The so-called Syrian National Coalition has reportedly accepted an invitation to join the talks.

The second round of the talks on Syria was held in Vienna, Austria, on November 14. Around 20 countries and international bodies were in attendance at the Syria talks. During the previous round of the talks on October 30, the participants, including the United States, Russia and Iran, agreed to push forward a peace plan for Syria that would include a ceasefire.

The Syrian conflict, which started in March 2011, has claimed the lives of more than 250,000 people and left over one million injured, according to the UN.

RT: Russia powers up Crimea, cutting dependence on Ukraine

Published time: 3 Dec, 2015 09:38 Edited time: 3 Dec, 2015 14:33

© Sergey Malgavko / Sputnik

Mainland Russia has started supplying electricity to Crimea after the first power bridge to the peninsula was completed across the Kerch Strait. Crimea has had a partial blackout since November 22, after power lines in Ukraine were sabotaged.

The energy bridge will deliver 200 MW of electricity a day from the Krasnodar region in mainland Russia starting from Thursday. Another 200 MW will be delivered by a second power cable expected to be connected by December 20.

Read more: Kiev not rebuilding power supply to Crimea for ‘political reasons’ – Novak

This will cover 80-90 percent of Crimea’s energy needs, according to Russian Energy Minister Aleksandr Novak. He says another 400 MW energy bridge will be constructed by May 2016.

According to Novak, Crimean authorities will have to decide how to allocate the 200 MW between consumers. Eastern Crimea will be the first to receive electricity from Russia, mainly the cities of Kerch and Feodosia as well as 180 other settlements.

Crimea is currently facing a serious shortage of electricity as a result of bomb blasts which destroyed two pylons in Ukraine on November 22. The power lines were crucial for delivering electricity to the peninsula. The situation was complicated after anti-Russian activists, engaged in the so-called blockade of Crimea, prevented repair crews from restoring energy supplies.

The Russian Energy Minister accused Ukraine of not repairing the sabotaged power lines supplying energy to the Crimean peninsula for “political reasons”. In response Moscow is considering halting coal supplies to Ukraine, he added.

Immediately after the blackout, Crimean authorities declared a state of emergency and put in place a power delivery schedule. The regional government said that the attack deprived about 1.9 million people of electricity and that the state of emergency would be lifted only after the energy supply to the peninsula has been fully restored.

Providing power to Crimea is a part of a bigger project to unite the peninsula with mainland Russia. Moscow expects to open a 19-kilometer long bridge to by-pass Ukraine in 2018.

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Dead to Rights: More Nations Confirm Turkey’s ‘Dirty’ Oil Trade / Sputnik International

http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20151203/1031198740/turkey-oil-smuggling-confirmed.html

© AFP 2015/ YOUSSEF KARWASHAN

We Know Who Benefits From Oil Smuggling Operations in Turkey – Putin

DW points out that in 2014, similar accusations were brought up on several occasions. For example, in June 2014 Ali Ediboglu, a representative of the Turkish Republican People’s Party (CHP) said that by that time Turkey had purchased a total of $800 million worth of oil from territories controlled by Daesh.

In August 2014 the Turkish daily Taraf reported that about 1,500 metric tons of fuel from Syria is being smuggled to Turkey every day.

According to DW, in early 2015 two scientists from the University of Greenwich, George Kiourktsoglou and Alec D. Coutroubis, published a study on Daesh oil smuggling.

According to the data they’ve obtained, about 45,000 barrels of oil per day were being produced in the Daesh-controlled territories in February 2015, thus earning the Islamist militants up to $3 million worth of revenues daily.

DW adds that this study reveals why the international coalition is so reluctant to deal with Daesh oil smuggling, as too many influential people are involved in that shady trade.

Awareness of Turkey’s Involvement in Daesh Oil Trade Grows

Alessandro Pansa, director of the corporate finance program at the LUISS Business School and former CEO of Finmeccanica Corporation, also told Sputnik that smuggled Daesh oil may eventually end up in Europe.

“Daesh controls oil wells but doesn’t control oil pipelines in seaports, so the group can only smuggle oil by land via tanker trucks,” he explained. “Selling oil from wells controlled by Daesh is one of the chief sources of income for the terrorists. The trade is being conducted through intermediaries who masquerade as engineering companies or firms dealing in oil and other natural resources.”

Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon admitted Israeli support for ISIS and other takfiri terrorists, calling them Syrian rebels – failing to explain they’re imported from scores of countries… There are no so-called “moderates” among them.

Since Obama waged war on Syria in March 2011, Israel bombed government targets multiple times. It continues supplying terrorist elements with weapons, munitions and other support.

Over 1,000 of their wounded fighters were treated in Israeli hospitals, helping them recover to resume waging terror on Syria.

Ya’alon claiming Israeli policy excludes “getting involved in the Syrian war” is a lie.

Israel’s long-range goal is unchallenged regional hegemony, independent governments eliminated in Syria, Iran and Lebanon, area nations balkanized into mini-states for easier control, undeclared Israeli borders expanded to incorporate territory of neighboring states.

On November 24, The Voltaire Network said journalist Sharri Markson got firsthand accounts from wounded jihadist terrorists receiving treatment at Israel’s Ziv Medical Centre, “specialising in war traumology…government-run and linked to the Israeli Defence Forces.”

Their recovery is aided to help them “continue the jihad in Syria.” Israeli security forces detained and interrogated her in a “heavy-handed” way for exposing what they want kept secret.

In September 2014, a photo of Netanyahu and Ya’alon visiting terrorists receiving care in an Israeli hospital went viral online – Netanyahu seen shaking a terrorist’s hand.

According to the al-Araby al-Jadeed newspaper, “Israel has in one way or another become the main marketer of ISIS oil. Without them, most ISIS-produced oil would have remained going between Iraq, Syria and Turkey. Even the three companies would not receive the oil if they did not have a buyer in Israel.”

In October, Iraqi security forces captured an Israeli colonel, Yuri Oulen Shahak, working directly with ISIS terrorists. He explained Netanyahu’s criminality during interrogation, one more example of Zionist evil.

He directly “participated in the ISIL group’s terrorist operations,” according to Iraqi authorities.

Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.

His new book as editor and contributor is titled “Flashpoint in Ukraine: US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III.”

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.

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