Second anniversary of Brexit Referendum: Hysteria and division surround Brexit votes and negotiations

June 23 marked the second anniversary of the referendum called by then Prime Minister David Cameron on the issue of whether to Remain in or Leave the European Union. June 8 was also the first anniversary of the snap election called by current Prime Minister Theresa May that was supposed to provide strong and stable government after Cameron resigned following the Leave result in the referendum.

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War on Syria: CIA program supplied money, weaponry and training to terrorist forces

Introduction

Timber Sycamore was a classified weapons supply and training program run by the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and supported by various Arab intelligence services, most notably that of Saudi Arabia. The program is the proverbial tip of the iceberg. It is further evidence that the United States and/or any of its collaborators and accessories including the Canadian government, with its proxy support, training and arms programs in Kurdistan, Jordan, Israel and Saudi Arabia, are guilty of crimes against humanity through aggression against the Syrian Arab Republic, a sovereign country. The use of proxy mercenary armies camouflaged by a fictitious “civil war,” according to the Obama Doctrine, masks the identities of their sponsors. It cannot hide them however, nor their aggression, from the light of day nor the reaches of international law.

No harbour for war: Spanish activists organize to kick out Saudi death ship loading weapons for Yemen war

The port of Santander in Cantabria, Spain, where the Saudi ship loading weapons for the Yemeni war is docked | Frobles, Wikimedia Commons

The Bahri Hofuf was kicked out of the port of Bilbao, then sneaked into Santander

(April 1) – In the first days of March, a Saudi cargo ship docked in the Spanish port of Santander to load weapons with Yemen as its final destination. Anti-war activists are trying to expel it from the harbour.

Selling the Canada-Ukraine-Saudi arms deal

By TONY SEED

Demonstration against 2016 CANSEC arms show in Ottawa

(Aug. 2) – On August 1, the state broadcaster invited the Ukrainian ambassador  to Canada, Andriy Shevchenko, to grace its Power & Politics program and celebrate the coming into force of a free trade agreement between the two countries. Five minutes of bashing Russia as the justification for military intervention – Canadian Forces training of Ukrainian troops, now at some 4,200 – followed. Finally, CBC host Terry Milewski asked this diplomat* to explain how the free trade agreement will “affect the lives of our viewers.” 

Canada-Ukraine Defence Agreement – An arms agreement for war

By TONY SEED

On April 3, Canadian Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan and Ukrainian Defence Minister Stepan Poltorak announced the signing of the Canada-Ukraine Defence Cooperation Arrangement. The agreement reportedly increases mutual co-operation in the areas of military policy, education, military research and development, as well as arms production.

Sajjan stated that the signing “shows Canada’s steadfast commitment to Ukraine and the Ukrainian people. It strengthens the ties between our two nations and helps us continue to develop our rich, mutually beneficial relationships. Canada remains fully committed to providing assistance to Ukraine, helping to preserve and protect its sovereignty through Operation UNIFIER, and to supporting the implementation of key reforms.”

Background on Canada-Ukraine defence agreement: A ‘rich, mutually beneficial’ arms trade

“It could scarcely be clearer. On top of laying the groundwork for increased arming of the Ukrainian armed forces, the Canada-Ukraine Defence Cooperation Agreement constitutes another means to expand arms sales from Canada to the Saudi Arabia dictatorship for war and aggression in the Middle East using Ukraine as a transit, as well as to potentially increase the share of the global arms trade by Pratt & Whitney, Esterline GMC Electronics and other private arms monopolies” | An exposé by TONY SEED

Merchants of Death – Lithograph by Mabel Dwight

(May 20, Revised August 25) – One of the main features of the Defence Agreement between Canada and Ukraine signed on April 3 are neo-liberal arrangements regarding arms production and the global arms trade. These arrangements are taking place within the conditions of intensified inter-imperialist rivalry to monopolize the global arms trade and the expansion of the theatre of operations of the U.S.-NATO bloc not only in Eastern Europe but also in the Middle East. The AFP news agency reports that Canadian Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan “also said [the Defence Agreement] was a step toward liberalizing arms sales to Ukraine, which are currently restricted. The accord is ‘a very important step before [we] get to that,’ he said.” In a Department of National Defence (DND) release, he stated it “helps us continue to develop our rich, mutually beneficial relationships.”

The agreement codifies, legitimizes and opens the door to government funding of private arms deals that have already been negotiated between giant arms monopolies of Canada and Ukraine. It marks the latest stage in the accelerated rapprochement between the two countries’ military and security establishments in recent years. This relationship, with typically overt and covert features, is undertaking increasing strategic significance with a number of important partnerships forged in the military-industrial and educational sectors.

Annual weapons fair held in Ottawa: Militant picket opposes militarization and war

Canadians from all walks of life held a militant picket on the morning of May 31 against the annual CANSEC weapons fair sponsored by the Trudeau war government and the biggest U.S. arms monopolies. Warmongering Minister of National Defence Harjit Sajjan, who was scheduled to speak at a breakfast event shortly after 7:00 am was delayed in entering, along with representatives of General Dynamics, the producer of light armoured vehicles sold to Saudi Arabia, Raytheon, the world’s largest guided missile producer and many other arms monopolies. Protestors denounced Canada’s participation in escalating war preparations and the use of the CANSEC event to pay the rich weapons monopolies and secure arms for war criminals such as the U.S., Israel, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and others.