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Title: Another Color Revolution from CIA Handbook: The Case of Armenia
Published: 2018-04-29
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8Gw84qL5xY
Title: Another Color Revolution from CIA Handbook: The Case of Armenia
Published: 2018-04-29
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8Gw84qL5xY
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Hello friends, I'm Professor Philip Kołaciewicz and this is the 79th edition on the Russian newspapers Monitor. I hope you are doing well today. Thank you for your feedback. NewsBud is approaching a two-year anniversary and from Sunday April 29 to Sunday May 12, all video episodes and articles will be open to all. If you are not already a member of the newsbud community, this is your chance2/44
to see all of our productions. I have no doubt that once you see how much expert content we offer, the content that you won't find anywhere else. You will join us and make our website your favorite cyber destination. Today we'll start with a front page of Niesa Wissima Gazeta, a middle of the road newspaper, the edition for April 24, 2018. On the top of the front3/44
page, there is an article about the recent dramatic political events in Armenia. The title of the article is, Ser Sargasian did not withstand the pressure of the opposition. Ser Sargasian is a long-time leader of Armenia who resigned his prime ministerial post on Monday, April 23, faced with the escalating organized protests of the opposition. The article reports that the protests in the capital city of Yerevan lasted4/44
about 10 days. The protests were directed against the election of Ser Sargasian, a long-time Armenian president, as the country's new prime minister by the parliament. The recent constitutional changes tailored by Sargasian made the presidential post largely ceremonial and he wanted to switch to the post of the prime minister and remain the most powerful politician in the country. His party has the majority of the parliament and5/44
so this seemed like an easy thing to do. It done deal. However, the protests showed that the opposition and those outsized forces supporting them primarily the United States and the European Union thought otherwise. This is why, as I see it, the changes in Armenia have many of the characteristics of the CIA designated and designed color revolution, directed against the non-Western or Russian allies in Eastern Europe,6/44
Central Asia and the Middle East. Indeed, if you look at the foreign policy of Sargasian, we will see that he closely cooperated with the Russian president Vladimir Putin during the last decade. Armenia extended the lease for a Russian military base in Vyumri and is a member of the Russian supervised military alliance, the collective security treaty organization, the CSTO. Armenia is also the only ex-soviet caucus republic7/44
which is a member of the Russian sponsored economic bloc, the Eurasian Economic Union. And just a week ago, when Sargasian was elected prime minister, he received a very warm congratulation from Putin. Now, obviously, all these agreements and links have been destabilized and have a very uncertain future. According to the article, the protests culminated on Sunday, April 22nd, when the police arrested the leader of the Armenian8/44
political opposition Nikol Pashinian and several other opposition members of the parliament. Sargasian was initially defiant and ordered the police to break up the protests. However, this had the opposite effect. More and more people, especially students, came out on the streets. The various army units were also seen as supporting the protests. The people in other major cities in Armenia also took to the streets and started blocking9/44
major intersections. The country was pushed on the brink of a civil war. But a day later, Sargasian resigned. And the first deputy prime minister, Karapetian, took over as the acting prime minister. Pashinian and his associates were released from prison and they were triumphant. They obtained a major political victory and are likely to have an advantage in the early parliamentary elections which are likely to be held10/44
sometime soon. And as I see it, triumphant were also the Armenian opposition mentors in Brussels, in London and in Washington, D.C. No matter how much the Russian media tried to put a positive spin on these dramatic changes in Armenia, this is yet another blow to put in and the Russian sphere of influence in the Caucasus region. Sargasian was a firm ally and a big question is11/44
whether his successor will continue the extensively pro-Russian Armenian foreign policy. The political changes in Armenia might also influence the Ilham Aliyev regime in the neighboring Azerbaijan to also abandon the pro-Russian path that the regime has taken in recent months. Nobody wants to be a Russian ally when the Russian geopolitical chips are down. The events in Armenia appear to be yet another Western retaliation for Putin's electoral12/44
victory. Too busy with their own presidential election and military engagement in Syria, the Russian leadership seems not to have paid enough attention to what is going on in one of its closest allied countries. However, this is just the beginning of the geopolitical destabilization of the Caucasus region. The Russians will know that they will provide as much support as possible to their allies in Armenia, including Sargasians13/44
still very powerful political party. On the other hand, the EU and the United States will continue to support the opposition both overtly and covertly. This unfortunately means that the days of peace in Armenia are numbered. When we take into consideration the unresolved Nagorno-Karabakh issue with Azerbaijan, the decades-long disputes with Turkey and the worsening socio-economic situation in the country, all ingredients for a regional proxy war between14/44
Russia and the West, similar to the ones already going on in Syria and Ukraine, are displayed in full view. Now, let's take a look at the front page of his West, a moderate pro-government newspaper, the edition for April 25, 2018. On the top of the front page, there is an article about how the Russian Ministry of Defense is preparing for the victory day parade. The title15/44
of the article is Orientation Toward the Future. The subtitle explains that the Ministry of Defense is getting ready to display the most advanced types of weapons. Below the subtitle, there is a color photograph of the victory parade practice run. The caption reads, the armored vehicles Tiger and Yars participated in the parade practice run in Albino. The article reports that the Russian Ministry of Defense recently sent16/44
letters to the companies belonging to the Russian military industrial complex, inquiring about the innovative types of weapons and weapons technologies that could be displayed during the victory date parade on the Red Square in Moscow. According to the article, the response was overwhelming and it is expected that Russia will showcase up to 200 different weapons prototypes. The mass production of many of these prototypes is to begin17/44
already this year. The article claims that, for instance, the prototype for a fully automatic robotized 120 millimeter artillery weapon called Flux, produced by the well-known Russian weapons maker Ural Vagon Zavod, might be displayed to the public for the first time. The anti-aircraft, self-driving artillery system, the Rewatia PVO might also be displayed as well as the anti-missile system tornado sea. According to the retired general Anatoliy Sipno,18/44
quoted in the article, the main reason why these prototypes will be shown to the public and international community, including Russia's geopolitical opponents, is psychological. In other words, Russia wants to send a clear message to the US and others that its military technology is very advanced and that all attempts to defeat Russia militarily will meet a strong response. According to the article, the other weapons and weapons19/44
systems that will be shown for the first time during the parade include the supersonic aircraft SU-57, the unmanned ground combat vehicle Uran 9, the multifunctional mine clearing robotic system Uran 6, and the tactical surveillance unmanned aerial vehicle, or drone, Korsar. According to Viktor Murahowski, the editor of one of the Russian main military magazines, Arsenal of the Fatherland, quoted in the article, the focus of this year's20/44
parade will be on the robotic technologies and the unmanned aerial vehicles. Some of these weapons were already used successfully in Syria, and Russia is no doubt hoping that they will find a lot of interested buyers throughout the world. It should be noted that the foreign sales of the Russian weapons are one of the main sources of income for the Russian state. As I said, Russia is21/44
responding to the Western pressure by militarizing its resources and territory. This is not a good sign for the future. The more different types of weapons are accumulated, the more likely it is that a small, perhaps even an accidental spark could lead to a catastrophic conflagration. In addition, as both the east and the west are militarizing, there will be less and less scope allowed for social and22/44
political dissent for free and critical thinking. The critics will increasingly be silenced by the repressive state apparatus, while the general population will be manipulated into perceiving them as traitors. Military dictatorships and counterintelligence states will proliferate globally. The dark age may be around the corner. Next, let's take a look at the front page of Comer Sun, a daily liberal newspaper frequently critical of the Russian government's foreign23/44
policy, the edition for April 23, 2018. On the bottom of the front page on the left, there is an article entitled, the S-300-AIM-ED-SERIA. The title refers to the Russian-produced long-range surface-to-air missile systems. The subtitle explains that Russia might soon deliver the S-300 missile systems to the Syrian Army. According to the article, Syria signed a contract with Russia on the delivery of S-300 systems in 2010. However,24/44
the surface-to-air missile systems were not delivered due to the request of Israel. Now, it appears that the Russian leadership is changing its policy. The article points out that two high-level Russian officials have recently spoken in favor of this policy change. The Russian general Sergei Rutskoi stated that after the US, UK and French missile attack against the Syrian Army, Russia is likely to reconsider the policy regarding25/44
the S-300 and quote, not only with respect to Syria, but with respect to other states as well. End quote, Rutskoi was followed by the Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov, who said the Russian government is seriously considering the delivery on the S-300 to the Syrians. The article knows that the Russian president Vladimir Putin met with the Russian Ministry of Defense Sergei Shogu and the chief of staff26/44
of the Russian Army Valeri Gerasimov, and that they discussed the various aspects of the situation in Syria. It could be that the decision on the S-300 delivery was made at this meeting, but according to the article, there is still no public confirmation. The article records the Syria ordered four complexes of the S-300 in 2010 and paid more than $400 million for them. However, due to the27/44
start of the civil war and the open disagreement of Israel, the S-300 were not delivered, and the money was returned to Syria. The article points out that these complexes were later sold to Iran for $1 billion. Now, it appears that Russia will deliver the S-300 systems to Syria within the agreement on the interstate military assistance, which means essentially for free. Russia has already installed the S-30028/44
and even the S-400 systems near its military bases in Syria. In his statement, General Rutskoi emphasized that not a single US, UK, or French missile during the recent attack was directed toward this area. According to the Russian political expert, Ruslan Puhol quoted in the article, the reason that Russia is now willing to deliver these systems to Syria is that Russia sees the delivery as the adequate29/44
response to the Western missile attack. Russia believes that the fact that the Syrian government would soon be in the possession of these weapons will make the West less likely to attack before Syria, because Syria now has means to retaliate. However, it is already clear that the Israeli leadership will not be happy with this decision. The question is whether Israel will decide to bomb the sites where30/44
the S-300 systems are to be deployed even before the systems become operationalized. And what if these sites are initially manned by the Russian military specialists as they train the Syrians on how to use the systems? What if the Russian soldiers get hurt? So far, the Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyaku and the Russian President Putin, have had a very good working relationship. The issue of the31/44
S-300 systems might drive a wedge between them. However, as I see it, whether or not this will in fact happen remains to be seen. It should be noted that the Comer Sun has a liberal newspaper. Often presents Putin's foreign policy decisions as more problematic than they are in reality. The editors of the Comer Sun would like to see Putin coordinate his decisions with the West. They32/44
support the neoliberal faction in the Russian government led by the Prime Minister Admitriy Medvedev, who will most likely soon be replaced by Putin. However, I don't believe Putin is willing to listen to the Western or pro-Western suggestions anymore. He will do what he decides is best for Russia. And he is the support of the majority of the Russian people for making any kind of decision he33/44
wants. And yet, this also means that the West will make Putin pay dearly for his insubordination, getting him into a conflict with Israel is definitely part of the overall Western plan. Lastly, today, let's take a look at the Russian semi-tabloid press. The front page of Comso Moscow, a Prouda Moscow edition, the edition for April 19, 2018. On the upper part of the front page on the34/44
far right, there is an article about the 75th anniversary of the foundation of the Soviet military intelligence special forces, also known as Death to the Spies or Smash. The title of the article states that the name Smash was proposed by Stalin himself. The subtitle explains that what follows is an interview with retired general Alexander Stanovic, a former high-level KGB officer, and now a well-known intelligence historian.35/44
The interview was conducted by the newspapers' main military expert, Viktor Baraniets, and was broadcast on the Comso Moscow radio station. According to Stanovic, the main reason that the smash was formed was to prevent the infiltration of the Soviet armed forces by the agents of the Nazis and other hostile intelligence services. The smash officers were active on the both sides of the front. In fact, one of36/44
the greatest successes of the war was the infiltration of the Nazi spy school by the Soviet smash officer Kozlov, whose code name was Saturn from July 1943 until April 1945. Kozlov even became one of the instructors at the school. Thanks to the information passed on by him, the Soviets were able to neutralize more than 150 deep-cover agents of the German military intelligence, the Abwehr. In addition,37/44
the smash officers were very sophisticated in receiving the German military through false information transmitted via radio. The so-called radio games, according to Stanovic, during the war, the smash initiated close to 180 radio games. And as a result, I'm covered more than 400 deep-cover agents of the German, Romanian, Hungarian and Finnish intelligence. According to the memoirs of the Nazi foreign intelligence chief Walter Schellenberg quoted in the38/44
article, the Soviets first transmitted true information. Together, Germans hooked and then, quote, at the most decisive moment, end quote, they would replace it with this information, which led to many German failures and ultimate defeat. Stanovic also noted that one of the key tasks of the smash was actually performed after the victory over the Nazis. Namely, the smash interrogated every single one of about two million Russian39/44
prisoners of war, as they were liberated from the Nazi occupied territories. Stanovic claims that during these interrogations, the smash uncovered several thousands former Nazi collaborators who were trying to escape punishment under false identities. Overall, the smash neutralized more than 30,000 enemy spies and collaborators during the war and in the immediate post-war period. According to Stanovic, several smash officers were posthumously decorated as the heroes of the40/44
Soviet Union and many more received various other military and state decorations. Sometimes though, the process of recognition took years, perhaps due to the secrecy of the operations, personal animosities, or the inefficiency of the Soviet bureaucracy. Stanovic, for instance, mentioned the curious case of Major Paspellot, whose unit seized the registry of Nazi spies in Riga Latvia in 1943, but who was decorated for it more than 3041/44
years later in 1975. Moreover, the smash was also successful in preventing high level assassinations. Such, for instance, was the assassination attempt on Stalin in 1944 and the Colonel General Govoro in 1943. The intelligence provided by the Soviet leadership by the smash and other military intelligence units that preceded this formation saved thousands of lives. And in the case of the Kharkov operation in 1942, the unwillingness of42/44
Nikita Hushchok and Marshal Timoshenko to take seriously the warning provided by military intelligence specialists led to a catastrophic failure with 85,000 soldiers dead and 230,000 captured. As I see it, the reason that the 75th anniversary of the smash was so prominently presented on the front page of the newspaper has to do with the present military resurgence of Russia on the international scene. In the last decade,43/44
the Russian media has begun extensively to publish about the glories of the past and to connect them conceptually and emotionally with the glories of the present and the potential glories of the future. And the World War II victory is arguably the most glorious event in all of Russian history. The Afrants, that's all for today. Thank you for watching and for your support for NewsBud. Do not