Porkins Policy Review
No Mike Swanson this week. So keeping with the Tuesday tradition on the show of being highly informative, Chuck and Pearse packed as much news and information into two hours as they could
From Bill Barr on Capital Hill to Explosions in Iran, Porkins and Ochelli covered the wild world on sportsman-like conduct without touching upon organized sports.
Show Notes can be found here I will be adding them to this post in the next few days.
On today’s episode I lay out my predictions for 2017. In the first hour I look at geopolitics and the places I think will be important in 2017. I begin by focusing on a possible resolution in Syria and how this may play out for the future. I also talk about a few other hot-spots in the middle east to pay attention to: Israel and Yemen. I discuss why these are both important for the future of the region and on a global scale. I also explore Asia, focusing on China and North Korea. I discuss how president Trump may handle these countries and how geopolitics and foreign policy will change under his administration. I also touch on the idea that the CIA will become even more bold and out of control under Trump.
In the second hour Chuck Ochelli (and Frankie) joins me for more 2017 predictions. We talk about where the alt-media is headed. Whether or not Wikileaks is actually going to release some bombshells this year. If Trump really knows any secrets about cyber security. The future of marijuana legalization and the drug war. Will comedy get better? And the possibility of Ivanka as First Lady.
From SpyCulture:
This was not the most interesting instalment of Homeland so Pearse and I talked about topics related to the episode including the history of Kosovo and NATO’s use of jihadis in the entire Balkans region, the arrest this week of a mysterious unnamed Montenegrin arms trafficker on his way to Paris, and why it is that the US Marine Corps Entertainment Liaison Office reports do not make any mention of Homeland. Pearse hypothesises that the USMC and Homeland had some kind of deniable outside-the-loop relationship and that suggests a much larger degree of co-operation than usual.
Show Notes:
Homeland Season 5 Episode 8 – An Intelligence Expert Weighs In
From SpyCulture:
Today Pearse and I discuss the latest 6th episode of Homeland, ‘Parabiosis’ which saw the return of the classic spies vs jihadis type of storyline. We looked at the two halves of the story – Quinn holed up in a refugee hostel/terrorist halfway house and ultimately him killing the Reel Bad Arab Hajik, and Saul’s rediscovering that he is actually a skilled secret agent. Both of these storyline are less about inducing a state of hyperreality and much more about shaping our perceptions of the real world. We discuss, for example, why it is that Russia is portrayed in Homeland as a patient, sneaky, intelligent people, but in news media supposedly reporting on real life events they are portrayed as brutish thugs. In the other storyline we dissect the fight scene between Quinn and Hajik as a metaphor for the struggle between Western military-intelligence establishments and Islam.
Show Notes:
Israeli military warns its soldiers against recruitment attempts by CIA
The wait is finally over: The new podcast series produced by Christoph Germann and me, Porkins Great Game, is now up and running! This new podcast will deal exclusively with Central Asia and the Caucus region, and will explore the various geopolitical machinations that compose the “New Great Game.” Porkins Great Game will be a monthly podcast and we really encourage you to be a part of this endeavor. So please follow us on Twitter, @PorkinsPolicy & @NewGreatGame, and feel free to email us with topic suggestions and news stories that pertain to the new great game. You can contact me by emailing porkinspolicy@gmail.com, and you can contact Christoph through the contact form on christophgermann.blogspot.com
On this month’s episode we take a look at the increasing violence in Xinjiang as well as the ISIS connection within the Uyghur separatist movement, and take a look at the recent Shanghai Cooperation Organization conference in Tajikistan. We discuss the military buildup in NATO proxy-country Georgia as we consider the recent announcement to set up both a NATO training center and training camp for Syrian rebels. Rounding off the Georgia section, we take a look at probable intelligence operative and ISIS commander Tarkhan Batirashivili, offer an update on former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, an consider Sibel Edmonds’ new novel The Lone Gladio and how it pertains to Georgia. Later we examine some of the recent attempts by the government of Azerbaijan to crack down on the Gulenist movement with in the country. Christoph and I explore how the national oil and gas company of Azerbaijan, SOCAR, may be quietly reopening many of the Gulen-funded schools that were recently closed. We also touch upon the the claim that ISIS captured a SOCAR fuel tanker in Syria, and talk about the twentieth anniversary of the signing of the “Contract of the Century.” We conclude the podcast with an exploration of the ambush of Saudi Prince Abdul Aziz bin Fahd this summer in Paris. This story received almost no media coverage, despite the theft of over $300,000 and diplomatic documents from one of the prince’s cars. Abdul Aziz bin Fahd is of course a high-profile royal official who has been linked to terrorism in Syria, and to billionaire and former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri.
Show notes:
Christoph’s websites– Christophgermann.blogspot.com, NichtZensiert.blogspot.de
Christoph’s work can also be found on Boiling Frogs Post where he is a contributor.
Xinjiang Latest developments:
The New Great Game Round-Up #62
Villagers recount narrow escapes in Kashgar attack as CCTV airs scenes of aftermath
Chief imam at Kashgar mosque stabbed to death as violence surges in Xinjiang
Is Uyghur American Association involved in recent wave of terrorism in Xinjiang?
Xinjiang-ISIS connection:
The New Great Game Round-Up #64
ISIS tentacles reach toward China
JCPA analyst: 1,000 Chinese jihadists training in Pakistan
‘Capture’ of Chinese national fighting with ISIS gives China jitters
At least 50 killed in Xinjiang violence, officials say (This story came out after me and Christoph finished recording)
SCO summit:
The New Great Game Round-Up #66
Georgia NATO’s military build-up:
NATO Chief Lays Out Package to ‘Bring Georgia Closer’ to Alliance
Exclusive: Georgia Offers to Host Training Camp for Syrian Rebels
Georgia: The New CIA-NATO Arab Terrorist Training Center
The Ginger Jihadist of Mosul: Omar al-Shishani the Chechen ‘General’
The mysterious link between the US military prison Camp Bucca and ISIS leaders
Tarkhan Batirashvili put on U.S. terrorism sanctions list (This story came out after me and Christoph finished recording)
The Saakashvili chase:
The New Great Game Round-Up #44
Georgia: The Saakashvili Chase Continues at Sea
Mikheil Saakashvili Doesn’t Know What Democracy Is
Georgian Court Impounds Saakashvili’s Property
Azerbaijan:
Azerbaijan shuts down ‘Gülen-linked’ schools
The New Great Game Round-Up #65
President Erdogan pays a visit to Turkish ally Azerbaijan
Erdogan reiterates call for cooperation on Gülenists
20th anniversary of “Contract of the Century” celebrated in Washington DC
Ambush in Paris:
How Gunmen Pulled Off a Daring Ambush of a Saudi Prince’s Convoy in Paris
Saudi royal named in Paris attack, amid reports of blackmail
What do we know about Prince `Abdul-`Aziz bin Fahd: who was ambushed in Paris
Hariri announces $1bn Saudi military aid to Lebanon
Saudi Arabia promises record $3 billion in military aid to Lebanon
U.S. Embassy in Ankara Headquarter for ISIS War on Iraq – Hariri Insider
This is how Al-Riyadh newspaper coverd the story of the ambush of Prince `Abdul-`Aziz Bin Fahd
Don’t look for Al-Arabiyyah TV to cover this story
Music:
Qaya – “Ey heyat ne qeribesen”
Never nice song from Xinjiang
Porkins Policy Review 