HOPES IN BELARUS 

BUT AN ATTACK PLANNED AGAINST THE U.S. BY RUSSIA?

A PROPHECY

by Dee Finney 

6-1-2000

updated 8-13-05

6-1-00 - VISION - I was seeing a series of skulls, one beneath the other. The first one was the largest and was purple and had the date August 19th ?   with a question mark.

Several more skulls were beneath the purple one ... the 4th one down was a golden color and this one also had the date August 19th?   with a question mark after it.

I then had a vision of similar skulls or perhaps the same one and I saw that they had hyperlinks to knitting patterns with them.  (I can only assume this is symbolic for plans being knitted together)

The last vision I had was these words:

 "Hopes in Belarus!"

******************

6-1-00 - NOTE:  While working on this page and looking up possible references for this page which undoubtedly fits in with a page I just finished on the subject of Nuclear War and seeing  a huge connection to Belarus where Russia's armed missiles have been stored, I discovered that the last live warhead was sent to Russia in 1997 after Belarus became independent. The U.S. declares that it doesn't worry about unarmed warheads....

I then discovered that there was a lot of damage in Belarus from the Chernobyl explosion and I also found a news report of skulls being discovered in Belarus and that a search was going to begin for the bodies which must be buried somewhere also and they were probably victims of the recent war.

However, while I was searching for this dire news, I realized with a sudden queasy unsettling thought, the Olympics are coming up and there is a sport called 'sculling' which Belarus might be participating in.  I don't have any particular interest in that kind of sport. Why would I have a vision of that?  As a test perhaps?  To see what I would do with that new piece of knowledge?  

What I didn't realize until now, that the skulls could stand for 'Skull & Bones'.  I wasn't really educated about that factor and George W. Bush at the time I had this dream.

I sat on the page then for some time, checking out when the Olympics were. They start on September 13, 2000, so Belarus couldn't possibly win the Olympic contest on August 19th.  Perhaps then, there is another championship that Belarus has to win in order to qualify for, a World Championship perhaps.

On 6-2-2000, I found several references where the Belarus sculling teams, both male and female were qualifying to go to the Olympics.

Thus I can't say for certain whether this vision was about real skulls or refers to 'scull' instead. Therein lies the danger of coming out with prophecies without checking the sources of information to verify the symbolism.  One can read the grocery store rag-mags to see those kinds of prophecies.

So, it remains to be seen what this vision was truly all about.

PREVIOUS WARNINGS ON NUCLEAR WAR

REPUBLIC OF BELARUS -

Belarus Constitution

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On the night of Saturday, August 12, 2005, Ian Punnett, on coasttocoastam.com interviewed two men who reported that there was a danger of Russia attacking the United States through the use of Al Qaeda this next week - probably Wednesday, August 17, 2005. 

See their website for more details:   msnusers.com/planetgomorrah and jrnyquist.com


Books  Origins of the Fourth World War

I noted that the number 19 is an Islamic number used by Al Qaeda in the past on 9/11/01 and it's possible the 19th could be used again in the future for an attack.    See:  http://www.greatdreams.com/trade-numbers.htm

 

On Friday, religious prophet Henry Gruber was on the Steve Quayle radio show, giving an even worse prophecy about nuclear terrorism against the U.S.  

Last week, we heard about a possible terror attack against Charlotte, N.C. during war games being held this week. Unless CNN didn't report that, I guess it didn't happen - yet.  

According to Henry Gruber, in his 1986 vision, the attacks are to be against New York City, Seattle, WA, Miami-Tampa Florida area, San Francisco, CA, and San Diego, CA. 

He was told in his vision, that this would happen "When Russia opens her gates and lets her people go and speaks about 'peace and safety.' 

Henry Gruber has been traveling around the world for many years, telling this prophecy to people, and has traveled around the United States to pray for the cities that might be attacked, but he informed the audience that there were 5 cities that God told him that he should not pray for because the attacks would be "Gods judgment on America." 

Henry Gruber gave these references:  Zech. 11, Zech 12, Zech. 14, and Gen. 49.  He said that the events of Zech. 11 and 12 had to be accomplished before Zech. 14 could occur.

Russia & Terrorism

In the first hour, journalist Jeff Nyquist and colleague Wade Queen talked about Al Qaeda's relationship with Russian elite military intelligence units and Russian mafia syndicates, as well as put forth their theory that Russia was possibly behind the 9/11 attacks, and could be planning a nuclear strike against the United States.

Here is the news from this week about Belarus: 

Walesa backs Belarus revolution By Jonathan Charles
BBC world affairs correspondent
Lech Walesa
Lech Walesa says Belarus should expect no help from the West
The former leader of the Solidarity movement in Poland has said he would support a people's revolution in neighbouring Belarus.

Lech Walesa who won a Nobel Peace Prize and went on to become Poland's president, was speaking on the 25th anniversary of the union's founding.

In an interview for the BBC's World This Weekend programme, he said Belarus should expect no support from the West.

He said the European Union should be ready to support a reformed Belarus.

Iconic figure

Lech Walesa likes to describe himself as a revolutionary.

Even 25 years after the founding of Solidarity, the trade union movement which eventually toppled Communist rule in Poland, he is regarded still as an iconic figure by many in central and eastern Europe.

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko
Alexander Lukashenko has led Belarus for more than a decade
Now he is turning his attention to Poland's neighbour, Belarus, considered to be the most repressive state in Europe.

President Alexander Lukashenko brooks no criticism and opponents are often treated harshly.

Mr Walesa says he would support a revolution there, similar to those which have taken place in Ukraine and Georgia.

However, he gave a warning that the people of Belarus should expect no help from the West, just as Poland had been left to struggle on its own in the 1980s.

But he said that if there were to be a change of regime there the European Union should immediately open its doors to Belarus as a way of encouraging democracy.


Updated: 3:37 p.m. ET March 27, 2005

Another People's Revolt

First came the Rose revolution in Georgia, then the Orange Revolution in Kiev. Is it now time for Tulips?

By Frank Brown

Newsweek International

Another people power revolt has erupted in the former Soviet Union. The question now: who's next, and when? On a bright spring morning last Thursday in Kyrgyzstan's capital, Bishkek, thousands of protesters, armed with sticks and stones, stormed the White House, the government's seat of power. Frightened riot police and officials were given safe passage out of the Soviet-era edifice before the crowd gleefully set to work sacking the place. When the victorious demonstrators left the building that evening, student volunteers at the doors checked bags, reclaiming office supplies and equipment that would be needed by the new government. The Kremlin-backed president, Askar Akayev, fled the country for Russia.

The old regime may be gone. But it's not clear that it's dead-nor that the disorganized opposition can rule. Already, the euphoria of revolution is giving way to doubt as ordinary Kyrgyz enter each new day of looting and chaos. Akayev loyalists were marching Saturday on the capital; there's ominous talk of civil war. Still, one fact is indisputable: yet another autocratic domino in the former Soviet sphere has toppled toward democracy.

Kyrgyzstan's Tulip Revolution came just three months after Ukraine's Orange Revolution and 16 months after Georgia's Rose Revolution. In all three cases, peaceful street demonstrations over rigged elections brought down corrupt, out-of-touch regimes with strong ties to Moscow. Kyrgyzstan is the first predominantly Muslim state to fall-and the first whose ousted president had vowed to let nothing of the sort happen in his country, even writing a recent book on the topic. A human-rights activist in Moscow with extensive opposition ties in Central Asia, Ismagil Shangareyev, calls Kyrgyzstan's swift regime change an ominous wake-up call: "This is an example for all the rest."

As Kyrgyzstan arose, neighboring regimes closed their borders and cracked down on opposition. In authoritarian Belarus, more than 1,000 protesters took to the streets Friday, seeking to spark a Kyrgyz-like mass demonstration. Earlier in March Russian President Vladimir Putin created a new department tasked with shoring up ties with former Soviet countries and blocking future revolutions that, some in the Kremlin sincerely believe, are being fomented by the West. Authorities in oil-rich Kazakhstan started cracking down on NGOs as early as February, after Kyrgyz opposition groups began to mount demonstrations protesting flawed parliamentary elections. "They are investigating NGOs all across the country. The prosecutor's office is working on it. The tax police, too," says Yury Gusakov of the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and Observing the Law.

Along with Europe's last dictatorship, Belarus, and turbulent Uzbekistan, these regimes share a generation of leaders with a narrow Soviet mentality. People power, whether in Bishkek or Kiev? They don't get it. Democracy, for them, is another word for insurgency. Fair elections are for chumps. They favor the president-for-life model-14 years in Akayev's case, who (according to one Western official in Bishkek) had become "delusional." Power corrupts and isolates, he says: "All you publish is happy news, and eventually you start to believe it."

Rather than reach out to their opponents, these leaders are desperately trying to shore up their positions. Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, whose son was once married to Akayev's daughter, is working on legislation that would change election laws and give greater power to security forces. The idea is to be ready for presidential elections set for 2006, when Nazarbayev is likely to face a powerful foe, former parliament speaker and now unified-opposition candidate Zharmakhan Tuyakbai. If Kyrgyz-style chaos looms in Kazakhstan, the West is likely to step in, given the potential effect on world energy prices.

Uzbek dictator Islam Karimov already rules his 24 million citizens with an iron fist. "He has used up all the possibilities for getting harsher. He can't do any more," says Central Asian expert Alexsei Malashenko of Moscow's Carnegie Center. Routinely censured for human-rights abuses that include the torture and rape of detainees, Uzbekistan currently has up to 10,000 people imprisoned on political or religious grounds. Yet Karimov, reportedly ill with cancer, shows no signs of coming to terms with a Muslim opposition that draws its strength from poor, jobless young men. That, experts say, is a recipe for an explosive uprising, far more violent than what took place across the border.

For now, most observers are watching Belarus as the next possible domino to fall. President Aleksandr Lukashenko has beefed up the authority of the local KGB, shut down dissident Internet sites and arrested opposition leaders. Even so, demonstrators have been turning out daily in the capital, holding portraits of the country's 10 political prisoners, among them two men jailed for "insulting the president's dignity." On Friday, 150 of 1,000 protesters were arrested, only to have more take their place. Opposition activist Andrei Sannikov is hopeful if not optimistic. "We're seeing the third wave of democratization, but it hasn't touched us yet," he says. "As long as the people don't really take to the streets, don't express their opinions, nothing will change."

Yet, in Kyrgyzstan, no one expected events to move so fast, either. Says U.S. Ambassador Stephen Young: "I have to say, I am surprised." Even a leading opposition figure, Social Democratic Party head Almaz Atambayev, told supporters preparing to march Thursday: "We aren't going to take over any buildings today." Certainly, the Kyrgyz government was caught unawares; two ministers were trapped when demonstrators seized their offices-and escorted them out unharmed.

Blinded by his own insularity, Akayev was thrust from office just days after he dismissed his political foes as unworthy of negotiation. If unchallenged, last month's elections would have cemented Akayev's hold on power. With the voting rigged, his son and daughter both won seats in the new Parliament, along with a phalanx of corrupt cronies.

Protests over the ballot began in the poorer, overwhelmingly Muslim south of Kyrgyzstan and culminated in the takeover of two major cities. Opposition leaders quickly established order, setting up joint patrols with police and promising to send busloads of protesters through the mountains and to Bishkek. By Wednesday afternoon, the capital of 800,000 was coming to life with a small demonstration organized by the student group Kel Kel-an organization with ties to Ukraine's Pora youth movement, the engine of the Orange Revolution. Some 26 students were arrested and dragged into waiting buses as at least 1,000 people looked on. "The government just doesn't have the power to control the people anymore, so they use these methods," said a disapproving Bolot Ismailov, an unemployed man on the edge of the crowd wearing a traditional high-peaked felt Kyrgyz hat. That night, much of Bishkek was leafleted with an appeal to show up the next day for an anti-Akayev march on the White House.

Thursday's protest drew tens of thousands of marchers. At first it was peaceful, albeit poorly organized. Shapeless clumps of people listened to elderly men berate Akayev's regime. Then, in midafternoon, scores of fit young men wearing blue armbands and carrying wooden clubs and makeshift plywood shields descended on the protesters, beating people without provocation. Vastly outnumbering the pro-government attackers, the protesters fought back and, in a massive surge, overpowered the riot troops outside the White House. Once inside, opposition leader Kurmanbek Bakiyev, a former prime minister under Akayev, raced to Akayev's seventh-floor office to make an appeal for calm and urge caution. Within a couple of hours, Kyrgyzstan's one bona fide political prisoner, Ar-Namys party leader Felix Kulov, a former Interior minister, was released from prison and whisked to the White House, free for the first time since 2000.

That night, as government television pledged its loyalty to the people and turned its airwaves over to the opposition, the center of the city plunged into chaos. Looters sacked first the Narodny chain of supermarkets owned by the Akayev clan and then scores of other stores. The poorly equipped police, frightened and leaderless, were nowhere to be seen as gangs of young men, many of them drunk, carried shopping bags full of beer and laundry detergent home. By daybreak, three people were dead, more than 100 injured and the city a shambles. Many, including some influential lawmakers, were disgusted. "These events show that there is no real opposition leader," says Kabai Karabekov, an independent M.P. who lost his seat in last month's flawed elections.

For now, Bakiyev is acting president and prime minister. Kulov, a charismatic politician and former mayor of Bishkek, heads the security forces. Roza Otunbayeva, the country's first ambassador to the United States and a figure well known in Moscow, is foreign minister. All three are pragmatists expected to run in presidential elections tentatively set for June 26.

In striking contrast to his condemnation of Western meddling in Ukraine, Vladimir Putin was almost sanguine in his response to last week's events in Kyrgyzstan. Though regretting the fact that Akayev was deposed by "illegal" means, he quickly declared that the country's new leaders were well known to Moscow and that he was ready to work with them. Indeed, these same Kyrgyz opposition leaders were welcomed to the Kremlin for talks earlier this year. By contrast, the Kremlin reportedly rebuffed Akayev when he made a secret trip to Moscow earlier this month, seeking a meeting with Putin. "Maybe they are learning," says Lilia Shevtsova, author of "Putin's Russia." "They didn't use the heavy ammunition this time."

Nonetheless, Putin and Russia have plainly suffered another defeat. Akayev's ouster puts yet another nail in the coffin of Putin's cherished Commonwealth of Independent States, created when the Soviet Union fell apart in 1991. At home, nationalist parties, among them the increasingly powerful Motherland, can add Kyrgyzstan to the list of former colonies that Putin has "lost" to the Russian fold. Much depends on what happens next. If revolution spreads to Belarus, say, then why shouldn't unrest begin to appear in Russia itself, where Putin's more benign form of autocracy is beginning to chafe? Clearly, these are heady times for opposition movements across the old Soviet sphere. Yet remember this: Kyrgyzstan, with its disorganized leadership and nights of looting, may yet prove to be a cautionary tale. Be careful what you wish for.

Source:

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/7306164/site/newsweek/

 

 

Nuclear Nightmares for Sale - History

From: http://www.logtv.com/tv/nuclear1.html

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, focus on nuclear weapons has begun to dissipate. Nuclear arms reduction agreements between the United States and the former Soviet Union are expected to drastically reduce the number of deployed nuclear weapons. However, as the probability of a large-scale nuclear war decreases, concern over the smuggling of missile materials increases.

Excess nuclear material is part of the physical heritage of the Cold War, and vast new weapons stockpiles combined with willing distributors have created what experts call the "loose nuke" scenario. Fully assembled nuclear warheads or missile materials may be stolen from loosely guarded Russian weapons depots and sold to weapons dealers, militant organizations, or governments eager to develop nuclear weapons programs. The emergence of this nuclear black market makes the threat of nuclear proliferation urgent and increases the number of players involved.

The growing stockpile of weapons-grade materials

Although specific weapons require different amounts of missile materials, on average four kilograms are sufficient to make one weapon. The stockpile of weapons-grade materials left over from the Soviet era is measured in hundreds of tons. These stockpiles have been left in the hands of four states: Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus, and Ukraine. Existing agreements between the U.S. and Russia call for the elimination of eighty per cent of the massive nuclear arsenals built up during the Cold War.

Although denuclearization by dismantling many thousands of weapons is desirable, it produces enormous amounts of missile materials and may actually exacerbate the leakage problem. Consolidation of weapons stockpiles into Russia occurs without reliable information about how security will be imposed after nuclear warheads arrive, where they will be dismantled, and where the materials will be stored. Currently enriched uranium and plutonium, both weapons-usable nuclear materials, are stored in over 950 locations throughout the former Soviet Union. We will limit our discussion to these materials because they pose the most imminent threat and require a black market for their transfer and purchase.

Not all uranium is useful in the construction of nuclear weapons. Highly enriched uranium (HEU) is an isotope of natural uranium enriched via sophisticated and expensive technological processes to levels above 20 percent. An enrichment level of about 90 per cent  is needed for weapons-grade classification. HEU from nuclear weapons can be blended down with other uranium isotopes so that it cannot be used for nuclear weapons.

Plutonium does not occur naturally, but is produced inside a nuclear reactor. Plutonium 239 (W-Pu), known as weapons-grade plutonium, is the most suitable plutonium isotope for building a nuclear weapon. However, since all plutonium isotopes are fissionable and can in principle be used to make nuclear weapons, surplus plutonium is a more difficult problem. Unlike uranium, plutonium cannot be blended down to safe levels.

The amount of HEU or W-Pu needed to construct a nuclear explosive can easily be hidden and transported without detection by current safeguards and patrols: The possibility of theft or diversion of these excess materials is a clear and present danger.

Security threats from inside  

Most of the nuclear security problems are inextricably linked to the troubled economic, political, and social conditions that have convulsed the region since the fall of Communism. For decades, virtually every dimension of Soviet life was controlled by the Communist government. The breakdown of Soviet era controls and widespread corruption have cracked the door to a smuggler's paradise, and acute economic distress is holding it open.

The nuclear industry of the former Soviet Union has not been spared the economic crisis of the past few years, and pressures on individuals to supplement their income are strong. Around a million people work in nine nuclear plants and some 15,000 nuclear laboratories and research institutes. At one time the Soviet nuclear workers, oratomshchiki, were the favorite children of the Soviet system and rewarded with extravagant apartments and other luxuries. Today they wait mostly in vain for their salaries of less than $100 a month. Huge financial incentives have tempted even respectable citizens to deal in nuclear contraband.

Traditionally, Russia's atomic secrets were among the most reliably protected state secrets. To ensure security, the most competent, professional, and carefully selected people were employed. Security measures at nuclear centers, primarily geared to guard against foreign enemies, include such protection as high walls, barbed wire, guard dogs, soldiers, and armored cars. However, these safeguards are virtually useless against internal smuggling, and most of the suppliers appear to be "insiders". In 1995, 80% of Russia's nuclear facilities did not even have simple Geiger counters to determine whether employees leaving the premises were carrying radioactive materials, and only one airport, Sheremetyevo in Moscow, has such equipment.

Workers in the Arzamas-16 nuclear plant recently made a bet that it would be possible to carry eight kilograms of metal past the security guards. One of them hid the steel under his overalls and feigned stomach cramps while two of his colleagues carried him to an ambulance. Had the steel been W-Pu, it would have been enough material to build a nuclear bomb.

The Russian military has also been affected by economic hardships. Military establishments-shrinking, impoverished, and demoralized-have become major participants in the illegal diversion of weapons. Salaries for military troops in charge of nuclear warheads are sometimes a month or two overdue. Border police, making about the same monthly salary as weapons guards, also partake in the vigorous black market that parades freely across Russia's many points of entry. It is unsafe to think that Russian customs agents can stop such a flow.

The threat of nuclear leakage  

Inadequate control and accounting systems make it impossible to determine how large or ominous the leakage of missile materials is. However, the number of reported nuclear thefts is rising. Sergei Novikov, an official from Russia's nuclear watchdog agency, says that theft of radioactive material is not unusual in Russia, "It is a fairly common occurrence. We have discovered many cases of theft of radioactive materials since we came into existence." In contrast, the Russian Atomic Energy minister, Viktor Mikhailov, claimed that new checks ordered by President Yeltsin showed no weapons-grade materials were missing.

Over the past year, the Russian Nuclear Supervisory Authority has registered about 20,000 incidents of blunders in security procedures at nuclear plants, and hundreds of alleged cases of nuclear assets spilling out of the former Soviet Union have been reported in various countries. Between 1991 and 1994, the German government alone has reported more than 700 cases of attempted nuclear sales. Although many cases turn out to be frauds, in the last three years there have been some sixty cases that involved the seizure of nuclear material.

Obviously any missile material that does reach a clandestine client remains unreported, so these numbers only represent attempted operations, not successful ones.  

Major incidents

The seven incidents described below involve the smuggling of weapons-usable material believed or confirmed to have come from Russia. These cases have been corroborated by several independent sources.

In October 1992, a chemical engineer at Luch Scientific Production Association in Podolsk was arrested for stealing 1.5 kilograms of weapons-grade uranium from the plant. He accumulated this quantity by some 20-25 different diversions and intended to sell the material in Moscow. This marked the first confirmed case involving the smuggling of missile material from a former Soviet facility.

Two naval servicemen were arrested in July 1993 for stealing 1.8 kilograms of HEU from fuel assemblies at the Northern Fleet naval base in Andreeva Guba, Russia. They claimed to be operating under instructions from two naval officers, both of whom were acquitted due to lack of evidence. Additional suspects associated with a Murmansk-St. Petersburg criminal ring are still under investigation.

In November 1993, two retired navy officers broke into the Sevmorput shipyard-one of the Russian navy's main storage facilities for nuclear fuel-and stole 4.5 kilograms of HEU. The men were apprehended six months later when one of the culprits asked a fellow officer for help in selling the stolen material. According to the military prosecutor who investigated the case, at the time of the theft potatoes were guarded better than naval fuel.

In May 1994, 5.6 grams of nearly pure plutonium were found in a garage in Tengen, Germany owned by a businessman who had been arrested for counterfeiting. He is believe to have had a $100 million budget from Iraq or North Korea to buy materials for a bomb. Although the origin of the materials has not been determined definitively, authorities believe the plutonium was stolen by Russian Atomic Ministry officials.  

In June 1994, Bavarian authorities recovered 800 milligrams of HEU in Landshut, Germany. A German woman was arrested as the central figure in a group accused of illegal commerce in and possession of nuclear materials. Five Czech and Slovik men said to be looking for buyers were also arrested.

In August 1994, Bavarian police confiscated a suitcase that had arrived on board a Lufthansa flight from Moscow to Munich. The case contained 363 grams of plutonium 239 as well as 200 grams of other radioactive material. The sellers, a Colombian and two Spaniards, had promised to deliver four kilograms of the weapons-grade plutonium to undercover agents for about $260 million. It was recently reported that the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service conferred to German officials that the material in question had been diverted from a research facility in Obninsk.  

After receiving a tip in December 1994, Czech police seized 2.72 kilograms of HEU from the trunk of a car parked in Prague. Police arrested the car owner, a Czech, and his two companions. The Czech man was a nuclear engineer, and his two companions had both been employed at atomic research centers in the former Soviet Union.

Making a bomb

Although the basic principles of bomb technology are available to anyone who knows where to find the information, constructing a large nuclear bomb is not as simple. Experts believe it is extremely difficult for radical independents to make an atom bomb without the resources of a friendly country. The main impediments are obtaining the missile materials and the scientific know-how required to build a bomb, but these obstacles are fading. Today, two pounds of plutonium can be purchased on the black market for $250,000 to $500,000. At this rate it would cost about $4 million to make an atomic bomb. Furthermore, with the current  economic crisis plaguing Russia's nuclear industry, Russian scientists could easily be bribed by other countries to then use these materials to build a working bomb.

Large scale nuclear weapons, however, are not the only threat. Experts are quick to point out that preparing a small bomb takes much less know-how, and even the smallest bomb could inflict significant damage. And a bomb is only one possibility. Somebody with plutonium, even a small amount, can spread it through the ventilation system of a building causing fatal results. Just one grain of inhaled plutonium can cause lung cancer.

Who are the buyers?

In most smuggling cases, the perpetrators do not appear to have buyers on hand, other than undercover agents, suggesting that the thieves who are apprehended are generally novices in the business of nuclear smuggling and are looking to make a quick profit. However, most analysts believe there is a users-market comprised of renegade states with nuclear weapons ambitions, terrorist groups and transnational criminal organizations.

American intelligence reports that several nations have expressed interest in the Russian leftovers for use in weapons programs. They present solid evidence that Libya, Iraq, and Iran have each expressed interest in both ingredients and advice. Recently, the strong suspicion that North Korea has accumulated several kilograms of plutonium has generated widespread alarm.

Self-proclaimed reports are also cause for concern.

Lieutenant-General Hussein Kamel al-Majid, once part of Saddam Hussein's inner circle, told CNN that Iraq had "a certain amount of plutonium that had come from Russia." The possibilities that these reports are legitimate are of global concern.

Although outlaw nations are considered the biggest customers of the nuclear contraband, they have in no way cornered the market. Any terrorist organization in search of fast track notoriety can easily capture global attention by "going nuclear", or by simply claiming to have done so. Although traditional terrorist groups will most likely remain hesitant to use nuclear weapons for fear of alienating supporters and provoking a worldwide crackdown, an emerging breed of multinational terrorists poses new threats. Experts fear that groups, such as Islamic extremists, are considering buying and using the deadly contraband. "To move from the tragedies of Oklahoma City and the World Trade Center to acts of terrorism requires but one small step," said U.S. Senator Richard Lugar. "Nuclear weapons in the hands of extremists would produce terrorism of a wholly new magnitude."

A substantial role in the proliferation of nuclear material is played by organized crime groups. Experts estimate that there are approximately 200 large, sophisticated criminal organizations that have established international smuggling networks that transport various types of contraband. Many of these groups have connections to government officials that could provide them with access to nuclear weapons and materials. Not only involved in the trafficking, organized crime groups are believed to be customers on the user-end as well. For them, radioactive isotopes of uranium and plutonium would be useful for extortion and murder. In late 1993, Russian Mafia assassins allegedly planted gamma-ray-emitting pellets in the office of a Moscow businessman, killing him within months. Since that report, at least half a dozen similar incidents have been recorded.

What can be done?

The global community is becoming increasingly aware of the threat of nuclear proliferation, and some precautionary measures are being taken. An indefinite extension of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) constitutes an important victory in the international effort to prevent further proliferation. The NPT obligates the nuclear weapons states "to pursue negotiations in good faith on effective measures relating to cessation of the nuclear arms race at an early date and to nuclear disarmament." The FBI offered its assistance and has now opened an office in Moscow. The U.S. recently passed the "Nunn-Lugar" security assistance program, which provides funds to help de-nuclearize Russia.

German Chancellor Helmut Kohl has supplied intelligence personnel to Moscow. The Japanese plan to use their expertise to design a furnace reactor to dispose of plutonium, especially from the former Soviet Union. But despite all of these efforts, the atmosphere remains ripe for smugglers.

Despite international efforts, we are not safe from the threat of nuclear destruction. Weapons-grade radioactive materials pose a huge threat to the lives of millions of people should they fall into the hands of unscrupulous or criminal individuals. Deteriorating conditions in the former Soviet Union indicate that the danger is likely to grow before it recedes. The destruction that smugglers and technocrats can sell might just make us look upon the 1980's-the height of nuclear armament-as a safe and secure period. At least during the arms race a more stable Soviet Union kept close watch over its weapons and missile material.

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The nuclear explosion of Chernobyl

(1986): On April 26, 1986 at 1:21am the number four reactor at the V. I. Lenin Nuclear Power Plant exploded releasing over thirty times the radiation of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The plant is located in north central Ukraine in a small town called Chernobyl. This happened during the communist era. Therefore, the world did not here of it until abnormal amounts of radiation registered at a Swedish nuclear facility. The total number of lives lost is yet unknown, and 2 to 3 million people are still living in contaminated areas.   Billions of rubles have been spent and many more will be spent on decontamination and relocating entire towns.

Chernobyl confirmed the dangers of using nuclear power, and also was a sign of the collapsing Soviet system. They were unable to deliver basic care and transportation out of the infected areas, and did everything they could to hide the disaster from the rest of the world. This often meant disregarding the safety of the people affected by ignoring them, and downplaying the situation. The disregard of the government in caring for the situation was a rallying factor for Belarus and Ukraine to reach independence in 1991. The plant is still in operation but is to be replaced by a thermal energy plant by the year 2000.

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India conducts nuclear tests (1998): On May 11, 1998 India conducted three underground nuclear tests at Pokhran. Three different devices were used in these tests. They included a fission device, a low-yield sub-kiloton device, and a thermonuclear device.   Two days later on May 13th India carried out two more tests with low-yield devices. India's principle nuclear policy is that nuclear weapons are weapons of mass destruction and would enhance India's security and the security of all countries who have them.   India claims their weapons are strictly for self defense and would be willing for total nuclear disarmament if every other country agreed.   It also could be the fact that Pakistan has nuclear weapons, and there has been hatred between them that stems back to 1947. They have a continued race for supremacy over each other and is evident in the nuclear arms race.

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BIO-TERRORISM

From: http://www.postgradmed.com/issues/1999/08_99/osterholm.htm

For the past several decades, smallpox has been among the most unlikely diagnoses that any clinician would expect to make, regardless of a patient's travel history or other risk factor. However, as noted in the preceding chilling scenario, this could change rapidly. Today such illnesses as smallpox and anthrax routinely make front-page news, in part  due to the recent flurry of threatening anthrax-related hoaxes. The growing threat of a real bioterrorism event has become one of the most feared infectious-disease possibilities as we move into the 21st century.

For many members of the medical community, important questions must be answered before this threat can be taken seriously. This article addresses the questions that help clarify bioterrorism as either media hype or a potential nightmare.

Historical perspective

Bioterrorism is not a new means to further political, social, or religious agendas. In 1346, the Tartar army hurled corpses of plague victims over the walls of enemy settlements. However, today's changing factors make the potential for bioterrorism in the United States very different than it was just decades ago. These factors include the growing number of groups and individuals willing or determined to cause mass civilian casualties, the unprecedented availability of traditional biologic-warfare agents, and the means to effectively deliver these agents to large populations. These changes are unparalleled in human history, and because of them, the United States must be prepared for the growing threat of bioterrorism (1,2).

Increasing public awareness of the threat of bioterrorism began after the fall of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s. At that time, several defectors from the former Soviet Union's biologic-warfare program described in detail the efforts to use biologic agents as weapons. The program was funded by two entities, one (ie, Biopreparat) in the Ministry of Medical and Microbiologic Industry and the other in the Ministry of Defense. In  the 1980s, more than 60,000 workers were employed in Biopreparat to develop extensive weapons systems using a variety of biologic agents. These efforts have been graphically described in a recently released book (3). One of the authors, Dr Ken Alibek, was the former first deputy chief of Biopreparat. He defected to the United States in 1992 and was one of the first people to draw attention to the potential for use of biologic agents against civilian populations.

The financial and structural collapse of the former Soviet government has been a factor in the dissemination of biologic weapons around the world. Because of severe financial difficulties, many scientists working in programs to develop such agents have departed, and security is critically   lax. There is substantial evidence that a number of these scientists have moved to countries well recognized for ongoing efforts in the areas of terrorism and weapon development (4). In addition, nongovernmental terrorist groups and religious cults with scientific expertise have made extensive efforts to procure and develop biologic weapons for use against civilian populations.  

The current situation

In 1972, more than 140 countries, including the United States, signed the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention. This international attempt to eliminate the possibility of biologic warfare or terrorism has been largely unsuccessful in limiting proliferation of weapons and their serious potential. It appears that while Western countries complied, other countries initiated massive programs in weapon development.

Complacency with the issue of bioterrorism was forever shaken by the events surrounding the Persian Gulf War and the discovery of Iraq's biologic-weapons program. The 1995 release of sarin gas in the Tokyo subway by the Japanese religious cult Aum Shinrikyo further illustrated the world's vulnerability to bioterrorism. Although the Japanese government attempted to dismantle Aum Shinrikyo after the attack, the organization continues to operate throughout the world. Today more than 500 members are known to live in Japan, and branches of the cult are found in Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, and Kazakhstan (5).

In addition, international terrorist experts recognize that the advent of the Internet has played a key role in the ability of terrorists, hate groups, and even potential lone offenders to organize activities that elude detection by traditional intelligence programs. The Internet enables these groups and individuals to easily obtain information regarding procurement of potential agents and instructions on how to effectively disseminate them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

NATO Expansion and the Problem of a NATO Strategy

Belarus ships last nuclear missile to Russia

 

MINSK, Belarus (CNN) November 27, 1997-- With all the pomp of a presidential ceremony, Belarus on Wednesday heralded the removal of its last nuclear missile, joining a handful of countries that have given up nuclear weapons.

"From today, Belarus obtains the status of a nonnuclear state and has fulfilled its international  obligations," said Belarus acting Defense Minister Alexander Chumakov.

The ceremony at the military base 140 miles west of the capital marked the final withdrawal of nuclear weapons on former Soviet territory, with the exception of Russia.

The SS-25 missile's delivery to Russia for destruction, under the terms of a 1992 agreement  with Washington, leaves Russia as the only remaining nuclear state among the 15 former Soviet republics.

Russia's largely nationalist parliament has failed to ratify the four-year-old START II treaty which would halve U.S. and Russian long-range nuclear arsenals from present levels, setting equal ceilings of 3,500 warheads. The countries now have about 6,000 missiles apiece.

Belarus, which once had 81 nuclear missiles, shipped its last 18 warheads to Russia on  Saturday, officials said. Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko said he held back one missile for Wednesday's symbolic ceremony.

Some confusion remained over whether Belarus had kept any empty missiles. But the missiles without warheads are not considered a threat.

Thursday June 1, 3:34 pm Eastern Time

SOURCE: Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe

Commissioners Outraged Over Lukashenka Threats Against Belarusian Opposition Leaders

WASHINGTON, June 1 , 2000/PRNewswire/ -- Commission on Security and Cooperation Chairman Christopher H. Smith (R-NJ) and Co-Chairman Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell (R-CO) today condemned remarks by Belarusian dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka threatening to punish the Belarusian opposition for ``seeking money overseas'' to overthrow his government and viewing them as security threats.

His remarks come on the heels of last week's visit to the U.S. by leading members of Belarus' democratic opposition.

The Belarusian opposition delegation, which met with Members of Congress, including Helsinki Commissioners, government officials and non-governmental organizations, consisted of Vintsuk Vyachorka, head of the Belarusian Popular Front; Anatol Lebedka, head of the United Civic Party; Pavel Zhuk, chief editor of ``Nasha Svaboda,'' an independent newspaper; and Dmitry Bondarenko, a leader of the Charter-97 human rights group.

Mr. Lebedka, who is also a member of Belarus' legitimate parliament illegally disbanded by Lukashenka in 1996, recently testified at a Helsinki Commission hearing on the deterioration of human rights and democracy in Belarus.

``Lukashenka's latest outburst is yet another in a long list of threats or worse -- including detentions or beatings -- against those who dare to question his democratic legitimacy and criticize his suppression of human rights in their long-suffering country,'' said Chairman Smith.

``Opposition leaders have disappeared or been imprisoned, and the independent media has been harassed. If Mr. Lukashenka wants to create a climate of trust for the Fall parliamentary elections, as he apparently pledged to do yesterday, treating opposition members as security threats because of their meetings in Washington is outrageous.''

Co-Chairman Campbell expressed grave concern about the personal safety of opposition members, noting the detention and beating of Mr. Lebedka following a March 25 pro-democracy demonstration in the Belarusian capital of Miensk, which was harshly suppressed by the authorities.

``Instead of making threats against democratic activists, Mr. Lukashenka should be seeking to resolve the political and constitutional crisis in Belarus by respecting human rights and putting an end to the current climate of fear,'' Campbell said. ``This includes ceasing repressions of those who seek to bring democracy to Belarus. The democratic opposition in Belarus deserves both our moral and material support as they seek to overcome the legacy of communism and authoritarianism and build a democratic society firmly rooted in the rule of law.''

Campbell stressed the ominous nature of the threats, given similar statements issued by Lukashenka prior to the disappearance of a leading opposition figure last year.

Excerpts of testimony at Commission hearings on Belarus and other materials pertaining to Belarus can be found on the Commission's website: www.house.gov/csce

Copyright © 2000 Yahoo! All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy - Terms of Service

Tuesday May 30 , 2000

US Warns Belarus Vs. Retribution

WASHINGTON (AP)- The State Department said Tuesday it would be a ``serious mistake'' for authorities in Belarus to punish opposition leaders for meeting with U.S. officials in Washington last week.

Such action, in the run-up to elections later this year, would further set back efforts to restore legitimate, democratic process in Belarus, spokesman Philip Reeker said.

Reports from Belarus said the government may treat the opposition leaders as a national security threat because of their meetings with U.S. officials.

``We urge the Lukashenko regime to end the political crisis in Belarus through a true dialogue with the opposition resulting in free and fair elections,'' Reeker said.

The delegation was led by Anatol Lebedko, a deputy speaker in the opposition-controlled shadow parliament. The meetings were held with members of the State Department and National Security Council.

Tuesday May 30 ,2000

US Warns Belarus Vs. Retribution

WASHINGTON (AP)- The State Department said Tuesday it would be a ``serious mistake'' for authorities in Belarus to punish opposition leaders for meeting with U.S. officials in Washington last week.

Such action, in the run-up to elections later this year, would further set back efforts to restore legitimate, democratic process in Belarus, spokesman Philip Reeker said.

Reports from Belarus said the government may treat the opposition leaders as a national security threat because of their meetings with U.S. officials.

``We urge the Lukashenko regime to end the political crisis in Belarus through a true dialogue with the opposition resulting in free and fair elections,'' Reeker said.

The delegation was led by Anatol Lebedko, a deputy speaker in the opposition-controlled shadow parliament. The meetings were held with members of the State Department and National Security Council.

Wednesday May 24, 2000

Russia Threatens Afghanistan Again

MOSCOW (AP) - Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov and other top officials issued new warnings Wednesday that Russia could mount air strikes on Afghanistan for allegedly aiding Chechen rebels.

Government spokesman Sergei Yastrzhembsky raised the possibility of air strikes earlier this week, saying Russian intelligence had information that Afghanistan's Taliban government had agreed to help rebels in Chechnya.

Ivanov repeated the warning Wednesday in a television interview in Minsk, Belarus, saying, ``In principle, if a potential or possible threat to Russia arises in one or another area, there are various options, including the one mentioned by Yastrzhembsky.''

Deputy Prime Minister Ilya Klebanov said that ``from a military-technological point of view, Russia is ready for anything.''

Sergei Ivanov, secretary of the influential Security Council, also said Russia should not exclude anything. ``All possibilities should be kept open,'' he said.

Such strikes would run counter to Moscow's criticism of U.S. strikes on supposed terrorist targets around the world, including a 1998 cruise missile attack on Afghanistan.

Russian forces pressed ahead Wednesday with attacks against Chechen rebels from their mountain strongholds in the south of the rebellious republic, bombing and shelling suspected rebel positions in the mountain forests in the Vedeno and Nozhai-Yurt areas, officials said.

Russian forces, driven out of the region in a 1994-96 war, re-entered Chechnya in September after militants based there seized villages in the neighboring Russian region of Dagestan, and after about 300 people died in apartment bombings which the government blamed on Chechens.

Copyright © 2000 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

6-4-00

Clinton, Putin Cite Terrorist Threat

By TOM RAUM

.c The Associated Press

MOSCOW (AP) - President Clinton and Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged ``a dangerous and growing threat'' of nuclear attack from emerging powers such as North Korea but failed to agree Sunday on how to combat it.

Clinton told a joint news conference in the Kremlin that he doesn't believe a missile defense system like the one he is considering ``is a threat to strategic stability and mutual deterrence.''

`The Russian side disagrees,'' said Clinton.

`We're against having a cure which is worse than the disease,'' Putin said, tersely.

Nonetheless, the document signed by both leaders left open the possibility for modifications in the ABM Treaty down the road ``to preserve strategic stability in the face of new threats.''

U.S. officials characterized that as an important concession on Russia's part.

Despite their differences, the two leaders - meeting in the Kremlin for the first time since Putin was sworn in last month - adopted a statement pledging intensified cooperation on missile-related issues.

``We've asked our experts to keep working to narrow the differences, and to develop a series of cooperative measures to address the missile threat,'' Clinton said.

Clinton stressed that he still hasn't made a decision on whether to go ahead with such a system, which would be aimed at protecting U.S. shores against attack from North Korea, Iran or other states with a nuclear weapons potential. He has said he will decide later this year whether it is feasible and worthwhile.

The two leaders also signed agreements putting in force initiatives begun by Clinton and former Russian President Boris Yeltsin: To reduce weapons-grade plutonium stockpiles by 34 tons each; and to set up a joint center in Moscow to monitor missile launches.

These are ``major steps to reduce the nuclear danger,'' Clinton said.

Clinton and Putin appeared to hit it off fine, even if they weren't yet on a first-name basis.

After two days of talks, Clinton said he believes Putin, a former KGB official, ``is fully capable of building a prosperous, strong Russia.'' Putin said Clinton is ``a person who is a very comfortable and pleasant partner in negotiation.''

The issue of a proposed limited national missile defense - and the changes in the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty that would be required to accommodate it - was a top issue on the agenda for the talks.

The administration had lowered expectations for a breakthrough in advance of the session, and none was achieved.

``President Putin made absolutely clear to President Clinton that Russia continues to oppose changes to the ABM Treaty that the United States has proposed since last September,'' Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott told reporters.

Talbott, who is also Clinton's special adviser on Russia, said the summit produced ``neither a dead end ... nor a destination'' on the subject of missile defense. He said Putin was clearly sensitive to the threat from so-called rogue regimes.

``The world that is covered by the ABM treaty changed very vividly on August 31, 1998, when the North Koreans fired that missile,'' Talbott said, referring to the multistage missile fired by North Korea that passed over Japan and fell into the Pacific Ocean.

In the joint statement, Clinton and Putin agreed that ``the international community faces a dangerous and growing threat of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery, including missiles and missile technologies.''

The missile shield concept also has critics in the United States, from arms control activists worried about a new arms race to conservatives who favor a more ambitious program along the lines envisioned by Ronald Reagan in the 1980s.

Reagan's proposal for a space-based missile defense program was ridiculed by Democrats at the time as ``Star Wars.'' Clinton, an earlier opponent of such a system, last year reversed course to support a limited missile shield.

Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush, who favors a more expansive program, had urged Clinton to leave negotiations with Putin to the next president.

Putin took notice of the U.S. presidential campaigns, saying, ``We're familiar with the programs of the two main candidates.'' He suggested he was willing to improve US-Russian ties ``no matter who gets to be president.''

Clinton also reiterated U.S. opposition to the continuing Russian military crackdown in the separatist region of Chechnya. They talked about tensions in the Balkans, and Russia's economic plight.

Clinton said that although they couldn't agree on everything, the two presidents at least explained their differences with ``clarity and candor. And I appreciate that.''

Putin, speaking through an interpreter, said the talks were ``very candid, very open, and very topical.''

The two leaders and top aides met in the Kremlin's ornate St. Catherine's Hall, and the wrap-up news conference was held nearby in St. George's Hall of the Great Kremlin Palace.

Between sessions, Clinton and Putin took a 50-minute walk around the gardens in the Kremlin, which is a walled city in the heart of Moscow.

Earlier, Clinton got in some sightseeing, visiting a newly reconstructed Russian Orthodox church, Christ the Savior. The original church had been destroyed in the 1930s by the Communist regime and replaced by a municipal swimming pool.

AP-NY-06-04-00 1607EDT

Saturday October 14, 2000

Belarus Opposition Holds Protest March

By Dmitry Solovyov

MINSK (Reuters) - Around 4,000 opponents of Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko marched through the capital of the former Soviet state on Saturday, calling on people to boycott a Sunday parliamentary election.

The country's relatively small liberal and nationalist opposition is boycotting the election on the grounds the assembly is powerless given Lukashenko's wide powers. They have also complained of a lack access to influential state media.

Lukashenko has long dismissed the charges and urged voters to flock to polling stations to take part in a poll ``in line with high international standards.''

The opposition march began to thread its way down one of Minsk's main thoroughfares, heading to the opera where a rally would be held. This would be far from government buildings.

Waving nationalist red white and flags, opposed to the Soviet-era flag reinstated by Lukashenko, the protesters blew whistles and klaxons.

One banner said: ``Milosevic today, Luka tomorrow,'' referring to the hasty departure from office of former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic (news - web sites) under popular pressure.

Observers from the European Union and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) were also watching.

The police presence was minimal although it had not been clear before the protest began whether the organizers had got clearance to hold the march nearer the city center. The original route had run through a remote suburb.

Some opposition activists had feared a police crackdown and a repeat of previous rallies which had descended into violence. The police had earlier said they would only act against the protesters if they blocked the traffic.

The authorities have dismissed the opposition's claims.

``Everything has been done by the authorities to ensure that the election to the House of Representatives (lower chamber) is free, honest and democratic,'' Lukashenko said in an appeal printed in the official daily Sovietsksya Belarus.

Opposition rallies have attracted only small crowds in recent weeks and opinion polls say most people will ignore their boycott call and vote for parties backing the president.

Minsk streets were also festooned with banners and food stands to celebrate Mother's Day, which could prove more tempting to city residents than a political rally.

Lukashenko, shunned by the West for failing to launch political and democratic reforms but with wide support at home, has ordered a crackdown on illegal protests.

He is not up for re-election, but both he and the opposition see the vote as a rehearsal for next year's presidential polls.

Colorless Campaign

Lukashenko's appeal and a fresh opposition call to stay home on polling day enlivened the close of a colorless campaign, with virtually no posters gracing Minsk's long, broad avenues.

``'No' to electoral farce!'' charged the headline in the opposition daily Narodnaya Volya.

``If you feel no need for change, if you want Belarus to remain an enclave of lawlessness and poverty at the center of a fast-developing Europe, you are free to give your vote to those in power,'' Anatoly Lebedko, head of the liberal United Civic Party, wrote in the daily.

Lukashenko came to power in 1994 on promises to raise living standards, halt corruption and forge a new post-Soviet union with neighboring Russia. Sunday's general election is the first since he dissolved parliament in 1996 on the strength of a referendum and replaced it with an assembly loyal to him.

The State Department has said it has no intention of recognizing the outcome of an ``undemocratic'' poll.

The European Parliament, the Council of Europe and the OSCE have sent a small technical mission to monitor the poll.

But they are not considered full-fledged international observers and have made clear their presence in the country of 10 million does not mean they view the vote as democratic.

~~~~~~~~~~

Sunday October 15 , 2000

Belarus Govt. Leads Tainted Vote

By MARINA BABKINA, Associated Press Writer

MINSK, Belarus (AP) - Pro-government forces in Belarus looked set to sweep parliamentary elections Sunday after many independent candidates were barred from running and the opposition promised to boycott the vote.

Human rights groups have already declared that the election will not be free or fair. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the continent's leading elections watchdog, did not send observers.

President Alexander Lukashenko, who has used his widespread powers in Belarus to crack down on dissent, has dismissed the criticism, saying the vote would be fully democratic.

``If the West and international observers do not recognize the elections, it will have a negative effect on the image of the democratic West and will show its double standards,'' Lukashenko said after casting his ballot.

``Belarusians are holding elections for themselves, not for anyone else,'' he said.

Mikhail Chigir, the former prime minister turned opposition leader who was jailed by Lukashenko last year and is often named as the opposition's leading presidential candidate, said he was running for parliament to make his campaign easier.

``If I become a deputy, my access to the mass media and work collectives will be easier and will help me to be nominated for president,'' he said as he cast his vote. ``This is why I am running for parliament now.''

The elections will be declared valid if more than 50 percent of the country's 7.3 million eligible voters take part in the election. Preliminary results were not expected before Monday.

At 2 p.m. Sunday, turnout was about 40 percent across the country, according to Lidiya Yermoshina, the head of the Central Election Commission.

Of the 565 candidates running for 110 seats in the lower house, or Chamber of Representatives, only 54 are not Lukashenko supporters. Some opposition contenders were barred from running on registration technicalities. Others on the ballot barely got their message out because of Lukashenko's crackdown on the independent media.

Many Western governments never even recognized the outgoing legislature, which was elected in a dubious vote in 1996 after Lukashenko ousted its opposition-dominated predecessor.

On Saturday, more than 3,000 anti-government protesters marched in the capital Minsk urging Belarusians to join their boycott the election, which they have said will be a farce.

Lukashenko is widely popular in the former Soviet republic of 10 million, despite a struggling economy and rampant inflation. The opposition is small and has been unable to sway many Belarusians, who long for the stability of the Soviet era.

Several opposition leaders have disappeared in recent years in what colleagues have labeled police abductions, though the government denies any involvement.

 

2004-12-29 13:23     * RUSSIA * BELARUS * SELF-ISOLATION *

SELF-ISOLATION OF BELARUS WILL NOT SOLVE STRATEGIC DEVELOPMENT ISSUES

MOSCOW, December 29 (RIA Novosti) - After the triumph of the "Orange revolution" in Ukraine, the democratic community will inevitably focus its attention on Belarus as the last zone of Russian interests bordering with the West and still not under EU control, Vremya Novostei writes.

At present, Moscow is continuing to support Minsk's policies, although there is much less talk about integration despite the fact that next year both countries' central banks must prepare the introduction of the Russian ruble as the sole legal currency on the territory of Belarus from January 1, 2006. Postponing the procedure for another year (the transition was originally planned for January 1, 2005) would undermine the idea of monetary integration once and for all.

IMF experts believe that a monetary union of Belarus and Russia could only function by centralizing the monetary policy of both countries and establishing a powerful central bank to ensure its implementation. The question is: will Minsk be willing to give up some of its financial sovereignty? The clear isolationist attitudes in recent statements from Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko raise serious doubts about the positive answer to this question.

According to Oleg Manayev, the director of Belarus Independent Institute for Socio-Economic and Political Research, "The main reason for the isolationist course taken by the Belarus leadership is to maintain control over processes in the political, social, economic and cultural spheres in the country." Unfortunately, isolationism will only allow the Belarussian authorities to solve tactical development problems without affecting strategic issues "Attempts made by Belarus to isolate itself from the rest of the world," he said, "clash with the European trend toward integration."

According to Mr. Manayev, representatives of Belarussian opposition parties and civil society realize the consequences of isolationism and will try to expand contacts with the West and the East in the future. For instance, leader of the Belarussian Social-Democratic Party, "Narodnaya Gromada", Nikolai Statkevich congratulated Viktor Yushchenko on his victory in the presidential election in Ukraine. "I asked Mr. Yuschhenko to pay attention to the current situation with democracy in Belarus and he promised to keep our country in mind," Mr. Statkevich announced

2004-12-30 10:36     * RUSSIA * CSTO * AGREEMENT * RATIFICATION *

RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT TO EXAMINE BILL ON RATIFYING IMPORTANT AGREEMENT

MOSCOW, December 30 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will submit an agreement on specific terms for siting the Secretariat of the Collective Security Treaty Organization on Russian territory to this country's Government for consideration today.

The Russian Cabinet is to examine a federal bill on ratifying the said agreement during its December 30 session.

The relevant agreement on specific terms for siting the Secretariat of the Collective Security Treaty Organization on Russian territory was signed December 19, 2003 in Moscow, thereby finalizing the Organization's structure. The Secretariat of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, which had evolved into a legal entity since then, can count on the Russian Government's support, the Organization's Secretary-General Nikolai Bordyuzha noted during the signing ceremony. From now on, the Collective Security Treaty Organization will possess all the required organizational and legal aspects, Bordyuzha explained.

The document, which was drafted in line with the specifics of this Organization's activities, outlines the status of executives and officials serving with the Organization's Secretariat on the Russian Federation's territory, also regulating its relations with Russia's federal executive-branch institutions.

The Collective Security Treaty Organization comprises Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan. The UN General Assembly passed a resolution on granting observer status to the Collective Security Treaty Organization within the General Assembly's framework.

The Organization scored impressive successes within the framework of operation Channel 2004 (that aimed to fight illegal drug trafficking in fall 2004). Those taking part in that operation aimed to prevent Afghan drug barons from smuggling their stuff into the CIS and Europe.

The Collective Security Treaty Organization is moving to cope with new threats and challenges together with the CIS anti-terrorist center, as well as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization's regional anti-terrorist structure. The Collective Security Treaty Organization is also ready to interact constructively with other international regional organizations, NATO included, for the sake of ensuring peace and stability.

23.12.2004 08:13:00 GMT 
Belarus to remain among world's 20 leading arms exporters 

Minsk. (Interfax-AVN) - Belarus intends to remain among the world's 20 leading arms exporting countries, Vyacheslav Sheida, chief of the Beltekhexport company's marketing and advertisement department, said on Wednesday.

"The country has stable positions on this prestigious list," Sheida told a news conference in response to an Interfax question.

"This is important and very profitable for the state, especially as far as economy is concerned," he said.

At the same time, Sheida would not name the countries that buy weapons from Belarus or the volumes of arms exports, saying it was a commercial and state secret.

He would not confirm or refute reports that Belarus is planning to expand the number of countries that it sells weapons to.

Azerbaijan, Belarus to cooperate in military field

12-23-04

Defense Ministers of Azerbaijan and Belarus signed an agreement on military and technical cooperation between the two countries last Wednesday.

Belarusian Defense Minister Leonid Malsev said his country is ready to collaborate with Azerbaijan in all areas, including the military field. He said that the document signed will allow bringing military relations to a new level.

Azerbaijani Defense Minister Safar Abiyev, in turn, said the two countries have cooperated since the Soviet Union era. Although military collaboration has been short-lived but successful, he said. Some military sources say that the new agreement envisions purchase of weaponry, conducting joint scientific research, training of personnel, etc.
2004-12-20 22:09     * RUSSIA * BELARUS * CURRENCY *

OFFICIALS OF RUSSIA, BELARUS TO DISCUSS SINGLE CURRENCY PLANS

MOSCOW, December 20 (RIA Novosti) - Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov will meet with senior Belarussian officials in Minsk Tuesday to discuss plans for the introduction of a single currency and the adjustments they need to be consistent with modern-day realities, a source in the Russian government told RIA.

The presidents of Russia and Belarus agreed in the middle of this year that the ruble would be introduced as a single currency in 2006, which prompted the necessity of updating the plan, the source said.

Belarus ties the signing of two agreements on the single currency to a couple of other agreements, unacceptable to the Russian side. The Belarussians want Russia to finance their budget deficit and to grant them a $2 billion compensation loan.

"The signing of such documents is unacceptable to Russia, and if the action plan fails to be signed before March 2005, technically we will not be able to launch the ruble as a single currency in the territory of Belarus," our interviewee said.

15.12 / 19:04 | 119 Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia, Ukraine start CES talks January
Minsk. December 15. KAZINFORM. Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine start talks on January 1, 2005, on the whole package of documents, needed for the formation of Common Economic Space (CES), Kazakh Deputy Prime Minister Sauat Mynbayev told journalists on Wednesday. Summing up the results of the 18th meeting of the high-level group for the formation of CES, held in Minsk on Wednesday, he reminded that the package included some 90 documents, reports Itar-Tass.
According to his information, the draft versions of all the documents with the exception of three have been prepared for the negotiations. Twenty nine priority documents, on which the negotiations are to be completed by July 1, 2005, are also ready. Mynbayev said the remaining three documents would be prepared by experts within a few weeks.
Commenting on the package of documents, which facilitate trips of natural persons across the borders of the CES member states, Mynbayev said all the four agreements would be ready for signing by the next summit of the CES member states.

 

ANOTHER PEARL HARBOR IN OUR FUTURE?
Belarus, Kazakhstan, the Russian Federation and Ukraine were recognized as USSR successor states following the dissolution of the USSR. ...
www.greatdreams.com/land_forces.htm

ANTI
HOPES IN BELARUS - A PROPHECY ... capital Minsk urging Belarusians to join their boycott the election, which they have ... www.greatdreams.com/belarus.htm ...
www.greatdreams.com/political/anti-government.htm -

WEAPONS OF WAR - REVELATIONS 9:13-21
... weapons stockpiles combined with ... the Persian Gulf War and the discovery of Iraq's biologic-weapons program. ... www.greatdreams.com/belarus.htm - ...
www.greatdreams.com/war/weapons_of_war.htm

GEORGE W BUSH
... who favors a more expansive program, had urged Clinton to leave negotiations with Putin to the next ... www.greatdreams.com/belarus.htm ...
www.greatdreams.com/political/bush-not-done.htm - 

WAR WITH IRAN
HOPES IN BELARUS - A PROPHECY ... interest in both ingredients and advice. Recently, the strong suspicion that ... www.greatdreams.com/belarus.htm - ...
www.greatdreams.com/political/stalemate.htm -

TULGHUR, IRAN - ANOTHER WAR?
HOPES IN BELARUS - A PROPHECY ... They present solid evidence that Libya, Iraq, and Iran have each expressed interest in both ingredients and advice. ... ...
www.greatdreams.com/war/tulghur-iran.htm

THE ATTACK AGAINST THE WTC TOWERS

'ON THE BEACH'!  IT'S JUST A MOVIE - RIGHT ????

DREAMS OF THE GREAT EARTHCHANGES
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