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70 Years After the War, No Resolution in Korea The dynamics driving conflict remain strong. Full reconciliation is as likely as open conflict. Walter Russell Mead

https://www.wsj.com/articles/70-years-after-the-war-no-resolution-in-korea-11593039440?mod=opinion_lead_pos11

The Korean War began 70 years ago, on June 25, 1950, when Kim Jong Un’s grandfather sent troops across the 38th parallel into the South. Pyongyang seemed bent on commemorating that event this year by trash-talking—literally. North Korea plans to retaliate for packages sent over the border by defectors containing derogatory information about Kim Jong Un along with South Korean soap operas on memory sticks. According to Pyongyang’s Korean Central News Agency, “12 million leaflets of all kinds reflective of the wrath and hatred of the people from all walks of life” have been printed, and 3,000 balloons are being prepared to unleash a massive propaganda blitz against the offending South.

The master strategists of Pyongyang plan to include bundles of trash with the propaganda. “South Korea has to face the music,” the North’s news agency said. “Only when it experiences how painful and how irritating it is to dispose of leaflets and waste, it will shake off its bad habit. The time for retaliatory punishment is drawing near.”

Or maybe not. On the eve of the anniversary, North Korea announced that Mr. Kim had told officials to put the campaign on hold.

The forces behind the conflict on the Korean Peninsula are as strong as ever. The Kim dynasty is grimly determined to hang on, and its estimated stockpile of 30 to 40 nuclear warheads plus its proximity to China ensures that none of its enemies dare to attack the North. The South longs for national reunification, but the South poses an existential threat to the Kim dynasty simply by flourishing as a democracy. Of the great powers nearby, neither China nor Japan really wants Korean unification. The U.S. would like to see North and South move closer together, thus reducing the chance that American troops would be ensnared in a second Korean War. But North Korean hostility poses riddles that no U.S. president has been able to answer.

Dump China: Time to End Beijing’s Pernicious Tech Empire by Gordon G. Chang

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/16148/end-china-tech-empire

China’s window of vulnerability… is only a few years at most. So this is the time for the world to act.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology talks about the country committing $1.4 trillion in the next five years.

China also is working on plundering Google, which has various operations in the People’s Republic including its AI China Center in Beijing and partnerships with the country’s two leading universities, Peking and Tsinghua. Yet the company has larger plans.

Google, which has refused to work with the Defense Department on artificial intelligence, is helping the Chinese military in that critical field. This situation is hideous. “The United States has to absolutely prohibit Google and other tech firms from doing business in China or with Chinese firms,” according to Brandon Weichert.

China’s market is losing its attractiveness. The economy is in distress, suffering from both the coronavirus epidemic and systemic weaknesses, such as excessive indebtedness, smothering state controls, and xenophobic hostility to foreign investment…. Now is the time to shut down Beijing’s massive, state-directed, and government-funded effort to dominate the world’s technologies.

“China,” some say, “is largely a land of rule-bound rote learners.” The Chinese try but rarely make breakthroughs on their own. Moreover, ruler Xi Jinping, who demands that his regime dominate the technologies of the world, is fast eliminating the one essential ingredient of innovation: freedom. Totalitarianism promotes obedience, a quality not particularly helpful for developing the technologies of tomorrow.

Yet despite everything, Xi’s China has still managed to become a technology leader in critical fields, such as quantum communications and 5G wireless communications. The Chinese, because of their success, are now racing to own the technologies of this century.

China also has weaknesses. Its economy is failing, and the regime, through especially provocative actions, is losing the support of the international community. The country’s window of vulnerability, however, is only a few years at most. So this is the time for the world to act.

“Where are the Visible and Audible Women in the Muslim Community?” by Elisabeth Sabaditsch-Wolff

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/16142/visible-muslim-women

“Muslim women are hampered in their development by difficult circumstances and a theory of coercion. … I could not tolerate that women can only pray in the back of mosques and are not properly recognized. I wanted to change this traditional picture, but the IGGÖ refused to question this, even institutionalized it.” — Fatma Akay-Türker, former spokeswoman for women’s affairs of the Islamic Faith Community, who resigned.
“I believe in democracy, freedom, questioning deadlocked theological structures and the equality of human beings. In a world dominated by men I fight for the right of women to speak out, against all forms of discrimination and the sexualization of women.” — Fatma Akay-Türker.
“Relevant passages [of the Koran] regarding women must be reinterpreted. But this was not accepted among the men [in the council]. The classical interpretation of the Koran cannot solve the problems of women….” — Fatma Akay-Türker.
In the meantime, a man has filled Akay-Türker’s position.

Fatma Akay-Türker, until June 16 spokeswoman for women’s affairs of the Islamic Faith Community of Austria (IGGÖ), has stepped down with a statement:

Resignation!!

State Dept. Classifies Additional Chinese Media Outlets as Foreign Agents By Tobias Hoonhout

https://www.nationalreview.com/news/state-dept-classifies-additional-chinese-media-outlets-as-foreign-agents/

Four more Chinese media outlets with operations in the U.S. are being labeled as “foreign missions” to highlight their close ties to the Chinese Communist Party, the U.S. State Department announced Monday.

China Central Television, China News Service, People’s Daily, and the Global Times are all joining the list of designated foreign actors, State Department spokesperson Megan Ortagus said in a press release. The announcement comes after five other Chinese media conglomerates were designated as foreign missions in February.

“The decision to designate these entities is not based on any content produced by these entities, nor does it place any restrictions on what the designated entities may publish in the United States,” Ortagus said. “It simply recognizes them for what they are.”

The distinction does limit the number of visas distributed to the outlets, as “foreign missions must adhere to certain administrative requirements that also apply to foreign embassies and consulates in the United States.”

After the State Department’s decision to first implement the new rules in February, China retaliated by stripping the press passes of American reporters at the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and Washington Post.

While America Promotes Freedom and Human Rights Abroad, We Must Uphold Those Values at Home By Lawrence J. Haas

https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/while-america-promotes-freedom-and-human-rights-abroad-we-must-uphold-those-values-home

Iran is hosting an “I Can’t Breathe” international cartoon exhibition, with seventy-two pieces from twenty-seven countries, mocking America for its racial unrest and portraying its leaders and police as Nazis and Klan members.

In China, officials are blasting America for its racism while the People’s Daily, the communist party’s official newspaper, ran a cartoon of a crumbling Statue of Liberty and a White House soaked in blood and tear gas. In Moscow, Russian president Vladimir Putin said on state TV that “if this fight for natural rights, legal rights, turns into mayhem and rioting, I see nothing good for the [United States].”

The hypocrisy is breathtaking, for Tehran, Beijing, and Moscow are among the world’s leading human rights abusers, and they don’t even pretend to respect the freedoms that Americans take for granted.

Tehran is crushing pro-democracy demonstrations in increasingly harsh fashion, killing hundreds and arresting thousands as recently as November, while jailing and torturing journalists, human-rights lawyers, labor leaders, and other activists. Beijing is jailing lawyers, censoring the internet, holding Uighurs in concentration camps, and curtailing freedom in Hong Kong. The oligarchs, journalists, activists, and opposition leaders who challenge Putin often wind up jailed, attacked, or dead.

Nevertheless, the autocrats’ attacks on America remind us that due to the ideals we promote around the world – freedom, democracy, equality rights, pluralism-we pay a price abroad when we don’t live up to them at home. We invite attack from our autocratic adversaries, divert attention from their human rights horrors, and make ourselves a less effective advocate for human rights.

US Researchers’ Ties to China by Shoshana Bryen and Stephen Bryen

https://asiatimes.com/2020/06/us-research-scientists-under-fire-for-ties-to-china/

National Institutes of Health recently fired dozens of scientists, mostly Asian men, for having secret financial links to Beijing

Harvard Professor Charles Lieber was formally indicted this month on two counts of making false statements to federal authorities regarding his participation in China’s Thousand Talents program and his involvement with the Wuhan University of Technology.

His arrest in January made headlines, but Lieber proved to be only a harbinger of more than 300 similar cases. All are related to US government research contract conditions and requirements, and all are now in the process of public exposure.

Even more worrisome than the number, all of the cases including Lieber were uncovered by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), although Lieber held contracts from both NIH and the Department of Defense (DOD).

There is no record of similar impropriety uncovered by the DOD itself, or any broader investigation as yet by the Departments of Homeland Security, Energy, State, Education, or other federal government agencies.

But if the US government looked into all contracts across all agencies it is quite likely that the number of cases could easily reach the thousands. The national security ramifications are frightening.

Lieber, the principal investigator of the Lieber Research Group at Harvard, specialized in the highly sensitive area of nanoscience and was funded with more than $15 million in federal grants.

These grants require the disclosure of all sources of research support, potential financial conflicts of interest and all foreign collaboration.

According to the indictment, “Beginning in 2011, Lieber became a ‘Strategic Scientist’ at Wuhan University of Technology (WUT) in China. He later became a contractual participant in China’s Thousand Talents Plan from at least 2012 through 2015.”

In the first count of the indictment, Lieber is alleged to have told the Defense Department’s Criminal Investigative Service that “he was never asked to participate in the Thousand Talents Program” and that he “’wasn’t sure’ how China categorized him.”

The second count concerned his contracts with NIH. “Lieber allegedly caused Harvard to falsely tell NIH that Lieber ‘had no formal association with WUT’ after 2012, that ‘WUT continued to falsely exaggerate’ his involvement with WUT in subsequent years, and that Lieber is not and has never been a participant in China’s Thousand Talents Plan.”

Will the EU Ever Stop Appeasing Iran’s Mullahs? by Majid Rafizadeh

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/16143/will-iran-appeasement

Germany, Britain and France also appear to have turned a blind eye to a recent statement made by the IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi, who raised serious concerns about possible clandestine and undeclared nuclear sites in Iran.

Germany, Britain and France must put a stop to their mercenary appeasement policy and corrupt loyalty to the Iranian regime. It is the equivalent of enriching the Third Reich during WWII or Soviet Russia during the Cold War. It would have been so much less costly in life and treasure to stop Hitler before he crossed the Rhine. The more the EU kisses up to the ruling mullahs, the more it empowers their rogue, soon-to-be-nuclear regime.

The ruling mullahs of Iran are being handed yet another gift courtesy of the leaders of Europe. On June 19, 2020, Germany, Britain and France issued a statement that they will not support the United States’ plan to extend the United Nations arms embargo on the Iranian regime. The arms embargo is set to expire in October 2020. Germany, Britain, and France, known as E3, were members of Iran nuclear deal, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which, revealingly, Iran never signed.

The foreign ministers of these three European countries pointed out in a statement that “We firmly believe that any unilateral attempt to trigger UN sanctions snapback would have serious adverse consequences in the UN Security Council”. They added, “We would not support such a decision, which would be incompatible with our current efforts to preserve the JCPOA.”

Did Germany, Britain and France fail to read the latest report from the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which highlighted that Iran is violating all the restrictions of the JCPOA?

The European Union has refrained from criticizing the Iranian regime even though, as of May 20, 2020, it has increased its total stockpile of low-enriched uranium from 1,020.9 kilograms (1.1 tons) to 1,571.6 kilograms (1.73 tons). That is approximately eight times more than what the regime was allowed to maintain under the misbegotten JCPOA “nuclear deal.” According to the terms of the JCPOA, Iran had been permitted to keep a stockpile of 202.8 kilograms (447 pounds), and enrich uranium up to 3.67%. Iran is now enriching uranium up to the purity of 4.5% and possesses far more heavy water than permitted under the nuclear agreement.

The EU has remained silent about all that, as well as the dangerous fact that Tehran regime now has enough enriched uranium to refine and build a nuclear bomb if it desired to do so. Approximately 1000kg of uranium enriched at just 5% can be further refined to create one nuclear bomb. Moreover, according to the IAEA report, Iran is still not allowing the IAEA to inspect its sites.

Major Canadian Jewish Group Expresses Concern After Supporter of Terrorism Appointed Secretary of Fatah Movement in Canada

https://www.algemeiner.com/2020/06/21/major-canadian-jewish-group-expresses-concern-after-supporter-of-terrorism-appointed-secretary-of-fatah-movement-in-canada/

A major Canadian Jewish group expressed deep concern after it was announced that a supporter of terrorism would be the new head of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’ political party in Canada.

Nabil Nassar, who has repeatedly glorified terrorists on social media, was recently appointed Secretary of the Fatah Movement in Canada.

A major Canadian Jewish group expressed deep concern after it was announced that a supporter of terrorism would be the new head of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’ political party in Canada.

Nabil Nassar, who has repeatedly glorified terrorists on social media, was recently appointed Secretary of the Fatah Movement in Canada.

In 2018, Nassar praised terrorists Karim Younis, Raed al-Karmi, and Ahmad Nasr Jarrar, the last of whom killed an Israeli rabbi.

In 2019, Nassar called Dalal al-Mughrabi, who participated in the murder of 37 Israelis, including 12 children, in 1978, “The epitome of the Palestinian woman … a symbol of resistance and pride.”

In January 2020, Nassar expressed support for Ali Hassan Salameh, who planned the 1972 Munich Olympics massacre. Earlier this month he mourned the death of Ramadan Shalah, an ex-leader of the Islamist terror group Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

Rioters in Germany Shout “Allahu Akbar” Daniel Greenfield

https://www.frontpagemag.com/point/2020/06/rioters-germany-shout-allahu-akbar-daniel-greenfield/

Once upon a time, we lived in a world in which terrible things generally stayed  within certain borders, but with the magic of the internet, terrible ideas spread everywhere. Like, let’s riot, burn, smash, and loot. And so America’s riots became Europe’s riots.

Here’s the party scene in the German city of Stuttgart.

Sunday, midnight. The violence explodes. “Windows were demolished, the pavement torn open, the stones thrown at police officers,” said local resident Matthias Grohe. “It was a war-like situation.”

Rioters, masked with balaclavas and scarves, break shop windows, carry away what they can carry. Alarm systems howl, glass splinters.

 A man in a green vest throws in the rear window of a police car and pulls out equipment. The crowd cheers and applauds. When an officer wrestles a riot to the ground, a hooded man comes running and kicks the policeman off the suspect with full force.

Police deputy Thomas Berger said yesterday: Of the 24 detainees, 12 were Germans, three with a migration background. The other half comes from. a. from Bosnia, Portugal, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan. They are “from the party scene”, which has been boasting of aggressive behavior against the police on social media for weeks.

A video shows how rioters shout “Allahu Akbar!” In the city center. 

The war continues. Sometimes it goes under various names such as mental illness, drug use, or riots, but it’s one war.

South Korea Says Bolton’s Memoir on Trump-Kim Summit Is Distorted

https://www.theepochtimes.com/south-korea-says-boltons-memoir-on-trump-kim-summit-is-distorted_3397006.html

SEOUL—Accounts by former U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton of discussions between leaders of the United States and the two Koreas in his upcoming book are inaccurate and distorted, South Korea said on Monday.

Bolton gives details in the book of conversations before and after three meetings between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, including how their second summit in Vietnam fell apart.

The book, “The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir,” is scheduled for publication on Tuesday but some media outlets have released excerpts.

Reports have cited Bolton as writing that Moon, who is keen to improve relations with North Korea, had raised unrealistic expectations with both Kim and Trump for his own “unification” agenda.

“It does not reflect accurate facts and substantially distorts facts,” South Korea’s national security adviser, Chung Eui-yong, said in a statement referring to Bolton’s description of top-level consultations.

Chung did not elaborate on specific areas South Korea saw as inaccurate but said the publication set a “dangerous precedent.”