by Stephen Lendman

Russia is geopolitical enemy No. 1. Not for wrongdoing. Or posing an existential threat. Or acting irresponsibly in any way.

For defending its sovereign independence responsibly. Lawfully. Wanting other nations respecting it. Believing rule of law principles are inviolable.

For Vladimir Putin, Sergey Lavrov and other officials telling it like it is. Expressing important views candidly, forthrightly and unambiguously.

Polar opposite duplicitous Western politicians. Especially Obama. A caricature of a leader.

Arguably America's worst ever. A serial liar. A moral coward. A war criminal multiple times over. A shameless head of state. A deplorable one. A dangerous one. A lawless one. A ruthless one.

Neoliberal, reactionary, belligerent, pro-war, pro-monied interests, anti-democratic, anti-progressive, anti-populist, anti-labor and anti-social justice.

A world-class thug. A threat to global peace at the most perilous time in world history. Russia's Deputy Defense Minister Dmitry Rogozin commented.

He explained Moscow's response to real existential threats. It's proud independence. Able to defend its interests effectively.

Not about to roll over for Washington or other rogue Western partners. More on his remarks below.

Welcome to Cold War 2.0. The first one never ended. Since Soviet Russia's 1991 dissolution, Western policy remained hard-wired in place.

Russia bashing persists. Intensely. Raging daily. Exceeding the worst of Soviet era levels.

Daily vilifying a maliciously reinvented Evil Empire. It's back to the future. Unsurprisingly.

Neocons infest Washington. Other Western capitals. Business as usual continues. At stake is world peace.

Numerous incidents occur. Contrived ones. Invented to vilify Moscow recklessly.

Sweden's so-called search for "foreign underwater activity" heghtened regional tensions irresponsibly.

Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said:

"Such unfounded actions of the Swedish Defense Department, fueled by the Cold War-style rhetoric, are only leading today to escalation of tension in the region."

He referred to "never-ceasing speculations" about Sweden claiming a Russian submarine's presence in Stockholm archipelago region waters.

Moscow denied the accusation. Sweden announced readiness to use force.

It ludicrously claimed Russian Baltic Sea area challenging activity. With no corroborating evidence whatever.

Acting provocatively without cause. Suspending defense cooperation with Moscow. Perhaps on orders from Washington.

Willingly serving as a convenient US stooge. Sacrificing its sovereign independence in the process.
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A world-class thug. A threat to global peace at the most perilous time in world history. Russia's Deputy Defense Minister Dmitry Rogozin commented.

He explained Moscow's respons

The latest incident involved UK Royal Air Force warplanes intercepting a Latvian cargo plane. Threatening to down it.

Claiming it failed to respond to air traffic control over Kent in Southern England. UK media irresponsibly broadcast a British pilot saying:

"I am instructed by Her Majesty's government of the United Kingdom to warn you that, if you do not respond immediately to my orders, you will be shot down."

Doing so heightened fear without just cause. Communications with civilian pilots were restored. Everything was in order. Things were resolved without force.

Media scoundrels wrongfully reported a Russian cargo plane. Then switching to "Russian-made."

It was a Latvian-owned Ukrainian one. It didn't matter. Frenzied reporting claimed Russian military aircraft in Atlantic and Black Sea waters.

US-led NATO said it intercepted four groups of Russian planes since Tuesday. According to an Alliance statement:

"These sizable Russian flights represent an unusual level of air activity over European airspace."

Media reports left unexplained what was most important. Russian planes were legally in international airspace. They crossed no territorial borders. They threatened no one.

Reuters quoted a Norwegian military spokesman saying:

"We see Russian aircraft near our airspace on a regular basis but what was unusual is that it was a large number of aircraft and pushed further south than we normally see."

Unexplained was they posed no threat whatever. Nor violated air space rules. Had they been US or other Western planes, nothing whatever would have been reported.

Cold, calculated Russia bashing changed things. Expect lots more ahead. Intense. Irresponsible. Malicious. Uncalled for.

Washington's dirty hands bear full responsibility. Rogue EU partners share it. Dark side geopolitics continues. No end in sight looms.

Dmitry Rogozin commented on Russia's response. It's militarily modernizing to meet potential threats. With the "most ultra-modern weapons."

By 2015, to be 30% equipped. By 2020, 70%. Perhaps 100% or close to it. "In fact, our Army and Navy will be the best armed and equipped in the world," Rogozin believes.

In terms of "efficiency, quality and price," he thinks Russia "will be able to realize (its) goal."

"We have to make weapons that will be more straightforward and cheaper than" America's. In terms of efficiency, they must equal or surpass its capability.

Washington relies on military power, said Rogozin. "It's an old formula, known since old mafia times. A gun lying on the table makes negotiations more effective."

"That is to say, a kind word can solve a lot, but a kind word with a gun can solve a lot more."

Washington operates this way. With help from NATO partners. "(H)aving evaluated the military threat, (we) understand that our weapons must be able to reflect not only an attack from one aggressor, but from an aggregate number of countries (with) a high level of technology and can use force against us."

At the same time, "(w)e have to create a compact army, so it can be mobile and transferred" wherever a threat of war exists.

Russia has the largest territorial country in the world by far. With a population of only 135 million.

Adequate protection requires 600 million, Rogozin believes. "Therefore, out task is to create a weapon that will allow each soldier and officer to replace five people."

"So we must have lots of weapons. Military personnel at all levels should be trained as "universal soldier(s)." Able to operate complex weapons.

Since people are few compared to territorial expanse to protect, every soldier's life is important. "(M)ov(ing) (them) as far away as possible from the actual line of fire" is essential.

Doing so requires "funding for the advancing (of) cutting-edge area(s) of science. (W)e need to stay ahead of the world. If we lag behind, we will lose."

"Will we have types of weapons (Putin says) will surprise our Western colleagues?"

"I can only say one thing. The formation of the technical basis for strategic nuclear forces is going at a surprising pace."

Russia is ahead of earlier plans. A nuclear submarine fleet is being created.

With strategic nuclear weapons "capable of reaching any country on any continent, if it suddenly becomes the aggressor and our topmost national interests come under threat."

"(M)ulti-purpose vessels (will be) capable of autonomous navigation to deal with any obstacles and that can compete in an armed confrontation with (an) entire enemy fleet."

"With regard to the Strategic Missile Forces, the President has already adopted and is implementing strategies."

"(W)e updated almost the entire fleet of strategic bombers. We have restored the capability of unique engines" lost earlier.

"(F)ramework has been laid for the creation of an advanced aviation complex for a long-range aircraft."

"Design works have been initiated to create a heavy bomber, which will be a powerful replacement for the strategic aviation which we inherited from the Soviet era."

Efforts began "to create a new missile complex, which will replace the current one." Everything is being produced in Russia.

Including electronics, engines, nuclear warheads, special part and other device management systems, Rogozin explained.

Ukraine's disintegration began when Soviet Russia dissolved, he said. The country was "up for grabs." Competing elements "gnawing each other's throats."

Reliance on Ukrainian military imports is ending. "In 2.5 years at most, we will fully replace everything" Kiev supplied.

"For Ukraine, it is the end. (A) complete demise of (its) state as an an industrial country." Their products and technology are outdated.

"What they are doing right now is suicide." Its science and industry are incompetent. Putin months earlier tried "wretch(ing) Ukraine from a tailspin."

To no avail once putschists usurped power. Ukraine is "finished. It is a personal tragedy" for its people. They can either accept mediocracy or move to Russia.

They're coming, said Rogozin. Those doing so know where their future lies. Able to continue working as scientists, experts, engineers, "but now in Russia as Russians," Rogozin explained.

They'll help Moscow's defense/industrial complex. Added competence against Washington's threat.

Rogozin calls its behavior "amusing, quite selective. They're saying (they) want to create problems for the Russian space, for the Russian rocket-space industry."

"They are trying to squeeze us out of the market where Russian companies gained opportunities to launch foreign satellites."

They're "attempting to cause as much damage as possible to the development of Russian space."

At the same time, they're dependent on Russia to transport astronauts and supplies to the International Space Station.

Until 2018, they have no other way. They're "completely dependent on our goodwill." They're biting the hand feeding it.

Moscow is up to the challenges it faces, Rogozin stressed. It understands them. It's acting accordingly. Responsibly.

It bears repeating. It's not rolling over for Washington. Or rogue European partners. It's preparing to address future challenges successfully.

Rogozin believes its state-of-the-art technology, competent professionals and commitment to achieve goals shows it's able to confront potential adversaries effectively.

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

His new book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks World War III".

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

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.

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