Bush Says Democracy Spread Inevitable, Rebukes Russia

June 5 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush, calling the spread of democracy inevitable, rebuked the governments of Russia, Venezuela, Uzbekistan and other nations for lapses that he said threaten to unsettle a period of post-Cold War peace.

``Pursuing stability at the expense of liberty does not lead to peace,'' Bush said in a speech today at Czernin Palace in Prague. ``The policy of tolerating tyranny is a moral and strategic failure.''

Bush's aides billed his ``freedom agenda'' speech as the most significant of his weeklong European trip, which includes the annual summit of the leaders from the Group of Eight industrial nations. He used the backdrop of a former Soviet Bloc state to say that ``freedom can be resisted, and freedom can be delayed -- but freedom cannot be denied.''

Citing America's experiences with South Korea and Taiwan, Bush argued that it is compatible to push for democratic reforms in China and Russia while maintaining ``a friendship.''

``China's leaders believe that they can continue to open the nation's economy without also opening its political system. We disagree,'' Bush said. ``In Russia, reforms that once promised to empower citizens have been derailed, with troubling implications for democratic development,'' he said.

Bush said the U.S. intended to use its influence to prod other allies toward more open societies. He included among them Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. ``These nations have taken brave stands and strong action to confront extremists, along with some steps to expand liberty and transparency,'' Bush said. ``Yet they have a great distance still to travel.''

`Worst Dictatorships'

Bush identified Belarus, Burma, Cuba, North Korea, Sudan and Zimbabwe as ``some of the world's worst dictatorships.''

The president also directed his message at governments he said were ``unjustly'' holding dissidents. ``I call for the immediate and unconditional release of your loved ones,'' Bush said to the families of Alexander Kozulin of Belarus, Aung San Suu Kyi of Burma, Oscar Elias Biscet of Cuba, Father Nguyen Van Ly of Vietnam, and Ayman Nour of Egypt.

In his address, Bush said a global movement of ``violent Islamic extremists'' is threatening ``free people everywhere,'' and expanding freedom is ``the only realistic way to protect our people.''

Bush said that freedom is ``under assault'' in Venezuela, accusing President Hugo Chavez of resorting to ``a shallow populism to dismantle democratic institutions and tighten their grip on power.'' Chavez has refused to renew the license of Radio Caracas Television, a government critic.

Tension With Putin

Bush's remarks highlighted the increasing tension between Russia and the West over President Vladimir Putin's moves to stifle dissent and the U.S. president's plan to install a missile defense system in Eastern Europe, a dispute that is overshadowing the G-8 summit.

Putin warned that putting the anti-missile system in Europe would spark a new arms race and that Russia may retaliate by targeting Europe with its arsenal of missiles.

Earlier today, after meeting with Czech President Vaclav Klaus and Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek, Bush said he wanted to assure Putin that ``Russia is not our enemy.'' The missile defense is intended to thwart potential threats from ``a rogue regime,'' he said, inviting Russia to participate.

`Tone Things Down'

Bush's ``appeal to Putin on missile defense sounded genuine and on the mark,'' said Andrew Kuchins, director of Russia and Eurasia Program at the Center for Strategic and international Studies in Washington. ``I think Vladimir will tone things down at the G-8, but it does seem that whatever we say or do really sets him off now.''

Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Kremlin rejects Bush's comment about the derailing of democratic reforms. ``Russia is a democratic country that shares common world and common European values,'' Agence France-Presse quoted Peskov as telling reporters before the G-8 meeting in Germany.

Bush plans to meet with Putin June 7 on the sidelines of the Heiligendamm summit, and has invited the Russian leader to the Bush family compound in Maine on July 1-2.

Bush's speech in Prague was the latest in a series of appearances around the world in which he has extolled the spread of democracy in a post-Sept. 11 world. Today's forum was organized by Jose Maria Aznar, the former prime minister of Spain, Vaclav Havel, the former Czech prime minister and Natan Sharansky, the former Soviet dissident.

Under the auspices of the Prague Security Studies Institute, a non-profit group that promotes democracy and free markets in former Soviet satellite states, Bush's audience included dissidents and democratic activists from 17 countries.

Before leaving for Germany, Bush met privately with 30 delegates to the conference, the White House said.

Bush said in his speech that he ordered Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to direct all U.S. ambassadors to meet with activists for democracy and human rights. ``People living in tyranny need to know they are not forgotten,'' Bush said.

CIA running black propaganda operation against Iran, Syria and Lebanon, officials say

raw story
The Central Intelligence Agency has received approval at least twice in the last several years to conduct an “information war” against several countries in the Middle East, including Iran, Lebanon and Syria, according to current and former intelligence officials.

In addition, the Bush Administration has been running operations out of the Defense Department that are not subject to Congressional oversight, intelligence sources say. These programs appear murkier, and have included support for an alleged terrorist group in Iran.

A recent ABC News report revealed that President George W. Bush had signed a presidential finding giving the CIA the authority to conduct “non-lethal” covert operations against Iran. Former and current intelligence sources tell RAW STORY, however, that there have been “at least two” presidential findings over the past few years which have empowered the agency to run an “open-secret” information war against Iranian interests, mainly leveraging resources and assets “within the United States and France.”

Although the resources – people, groups, organizations – were not identified, sources say that they are not terrorist organizations or groups using violent tactics to achieve their goals. “It's a propaganda operation,” said a former intelligence case officer who wished to remain anonymous due to the sensitive nature of the information. “It is not new or aggressive,” the source added, explaining that the operation has been going on for some time and has Congressional funding and oversight.

CIA spokesman Paul Gimigliano would not comment about the allegations made in the ABC report or discuss the existence of the presidential findings identified to RAW STORY.

“The CIA does not, as a matter of course, publicly discuss allegations of covert action, whether the assertions are wrong, right, or somewhere in-between,” Gimigliano said. “That's one reason why the term ‘covert action' still exists.”

“But it's important to remember that, through the Congress, there is vigorous oversight of secret intelligence activities,” he added.

According to current and former intelligence officials, the various presidential findings are not limited to Iran. Several countries within the Middle East – including Syria and Lebanon – as well as groups such as Hezbollah, are being targeted through what sources call “black propaganda” efforts.

Iran is being targeted by the CIA's activities with a “pro-democracy” message, sources say, and the agency is supporting overt “pro-democracy” groups.

The program's particulars are highly classified. Intelligence sources stress, however, that the groups being used are rather mainstream and the operations are almost entirely restricted to information warfare.

Sources would not identify what mechanism was being employed to distribute the propaganda, if it included news media, individuals or organizations, or whether that information was seeping back into domestic news reports.

One former intelligence case officer did explain that the CIA's program is operating largely outside of the Middle East and is aimed at identifying potential allies, as well as using already existing well known groups through whom information can be delivered. The type of “information” and the “groups” and “organizations” involved were not identified.

ABC News may have reported the presidential finding as “new” because of the recently passed massive intelligence budget. Under the bill, roughly $50 million was appropriated for the “Democracy Fund” and the “Broadcasting Board of Governors,” both earmarked for Iran operations.

Sources close to the Select Senate Committee on Intelligence would not discuss any aspect of the CIA program or comment on anything relating to the presidential findings.

“This is an area I simply cannot get into,” said one source.

Pentagon operation supporting terrorist group kept from Congress

RAW STORY has also learned that the Pentagon is continuing to conduct more aggressive “black” operations, approved by the National Security Council and the Office of the Vice President.

Current and former intelligence officials would not identify new specific covert programs running out of the Pentagon, though sources stressed these are far riskier and more truly covert operational activities against Iran than the activities of the CIA.

These operations started almost immediately after the Iraq war and have continued for several years. Because they can be considered part of a military operation, they are not subjects to the same requirements for Congressional authorization as the activities of the CIA.

The majority of these efforts to destabilize Iran through a covert war of aggression have been carried out by the Department of Defense, largely steered by the Office of the Vice President and by then-Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.

A series of RAW STORY reports has identified some of the “off book” or black operations running out of the Pentagon over the last several years. In 2003, the Defense Department began working with terrorist and dissident groups in an effort to destabilize Iran, bypassing traditional intelligence channels. One of the assets the Pentagon used was a terrorist organization known as Mujahedeen-e Khalq (MEK), which was being “run” in two southern regional areas of Iran, including a Shia region where a series of attacks in 2006 left many dead and hundreds injured.

These activities have often been guided by the same individuals whose actions during Iran-Contra were the reason for a 1991 law on covert activities which for the first time clearly defined covert activities and how their oversight should be handled.

During Iran-Contra, the Reagan White House – via the National Security Council – sold weapons to Iran, an avowed enemy of the United States, and used the money to fund various terrorist and dissident groups, collectively called the Contras, to fight a proxy war against the government of Nicaragua.

Sources say that MEK has been used for intelligence collection, an activity which has traditionally fallen under the CIA. The administration also appears to be looking the other way as groups such as MEK commit acts of violence.

Intelligence sources interviewed for this article all expressed concern over the lack of attention to the Pentagon's covert activities. Some believe illegal activities like those of the Iran-Contra days are now being hidden under the loophole of “traditional military activities” to avoid Congressional oversight.

Steven Aftergood, director for the Federation of American Scientists Project on Government Secrecy, says this loophole exists in Congressional oversight with regards to military covert activities.

“CIA covert actions have to be authorized by a written presidential finding, which must be provided to Congress,” Aftergood said. “By contrast, DOD operations, including clandestine or covert operations, are not subject to this procedure.

“As a result,” he added, “there may be a temptation to opt for a purely military action to take advantage of the loophole in congressional notification requirements.”

Covert economic warfare may not be limited to CIA

Another former intelligence official said that the CIA has been cleared to target Iran's economic interests, but that the approval is limited to non-aggressive activities. The CIA “has been empowered to put economic pressure on Iran,” the former intelligence officer stated, but would not elaborate on what the meaning of “pressure” is.

Yet some suggest that the economic element of the covert program is either far more aggressive or is being attributed to the CIA when in fact another agency may be running it.

Foreign intelligence sources say that economic pressure is aimed at Iran's oil-rich economy, with US efforts serving to “persuade” financial institutions, oil companies, and international investment interests to pull out of Iran and even drop already existing energy projects.

These sources cite the example of an unnamed company that is being denied financing for energy projects inside Iran by international banks, indicating that many more such examples exist.

Other possible forms of pressure would include less subtle activities, such as intercepting supply convoys and confiscating equipment. Foreign sources are not sure if this covert activity is in fact part of the CIA program.

The Department of Defense did not respond to comment on this story.

Muriel Kane contributed to the research for this article.

Most of Baghdad 'not controlled'

bbc
US and Iraqi forces control fewer than one-third of Baghdad's neighbourhoods, according to a review of a security crackdown in the city since February.
An interim US military assessment says sectarian violence has diminished in some areas, but is particularly serious in Sunni-Shia areas of west Baghdad.

More than 20,000 US reinforcements are being deployed as part of the campaign.

Details of the report came as police said they had shot a suspected female suicide bomber in east Baghdad.

An interior ministry spokesman said the woman in traditional Muslim dress, walked towards a police recruiting centre and ignored calls to stop.

Three police recruits received minor wounds from the explosion. The woman died at the scene of the attack.

"Some elements of the mechanised brigade saw a suspicious woman and ordered her to stop, but she didn't respond and approached the recruits, so they opened fire on her and she exploded," a police spokesman said.

Although suicide bombings are a frequent occurrence in Iraq, female bombers are relatively rare.

'Iraqi failures'

A US military spokesman said it would not be possible to judge the success of the Baghdad security plan until all the extra units had been put in place.

"It's going to get harder before it gets easier," Lt-Col Christopher Garver said. "We know it's going to be a tough fight over the summer."

Details of the interim assessment included information that US and Iraq forces were in control of just 146 of Baghdad's 457 districts.

The report highlighted a failure of Iraqi police and army units to provide all the forces promised to carry out basic security tasks including manning checkpoints and conducting patrols.

May had the third highest death toll of American soldiers, 127, since the US-led invasion to overthrow the government of Saddam Hussein in March 2003.

Thousands of Iraqis have been killed since February.

Correspondents say there was a significant reduction in the number of sectarian killings early on in crackdown, but numbers have now risen again, with dozens of bodies being found in Baghdad almost every day.

President George W Bush won a tough battle with opposition-controlled Congress to fund the crackdown and is under pressure to show progress or start bringing troops home.

Experts cast doubt on credibility of JFK terror plot

afp
An alleged plot to blow up fuel tanks and pipelines at New York's JFK airport had little chance of success, according to safety experts, who have questioned whether the plot ever posed a real threat.

US authorities said Saturday they had averted an attack that could have resulted in "unfathomable damage, deaths, and destruction," and charged four alleged Islamic radicals with conspiracy to cause an explosion at the airport.

But according to the experts, it would have been next to impossible to cause an explosion in the jet fuel tanks and pipeline. Furthermore, the plotters seem to have lacked the explosives and financial backing to carry out the attack.

John Goglia, a former member of National Transportation Safety Board, said that if the plot had ever been carried out, it would likely have sparked a fire but little else, and certainly not the mass carnage authorities described.

"You could definitely reach the tank, definitely start the fire, but to get the kind of explosion that they were thinking that they were going to get... this is virtually impossible to do," he told AFP.

The fuel pipelines around the airport would similarly burn, rather than explode, because they are a full of fuel and unable to mix with enough oxygen.

"We had a number of fires in the US. All that happens is a big fire," he said. "It won't blow up, it will only burn."

Even if the attackers had managed to blow up a fuel tank, the impact would be limited, he said, citing the example of North Vietnamese forces attacking US fuel dumps during the Vietnam war.

"They hit the fuel tanks with pretty big rockets. You would get a big fire but not a big explosion other than the rocket."

"There is a difference between just exploding the tank and a huge explosion. The tank may explode and blow up some metal, but that certainly wouldn't go very far," he said.

His comments contrasted with those of US Attorney Roslynn Mauskopf, who insisted at the weekend that "the devastation that would be caused had this plot succeeded is just unthinkable."

Jake Magish, an engineer with Supersafe Tank Systems, also cast doubt on the credibility of the plot, saying: "The fantasy that I've heard about the people saying 'they will blow the tank and destroy the airport,' is nonsense."

"There are people there responding to hysteria, I think. But from an engineering point of view, if someone is successful in blowing a hole into a tank, they will just have a fire from one tank.

"There is no way for the fire to go from tank to tank, that is nonsense. It just won't happen."

Besides the alleged plotters' capability, other questions have focused on the main source in the probe -- a convicted drug dealer who infiltrated the group and whose sentence was pending as part of his cooperation with police.

Neal Sonnett, a former federal prosecutor, told the New York Times there was also a danger in overstating how serious or sophisticated a plot really was.

"There unfortunately has been a tendency to shout too loudly about such cases," he said. "To the extent that you over-hype a case, you create fear and paranoia," he said.

The New York Times on Sunday pointedly avoided giving much coverage to the alleged plot, devoting only a brief on its front page continued on the local section, despite the story breaking in the early afternoon on Saturday.

Bush derails attempts to end illegal wiretapping

Press Esc
President Bush derailed a bill by the US Congress aimed at ending the Administration's illegal wiretapping by not providing documents related to the President's warrantless wiretapping program to the Senate Intelligence Committee that is currently reviewing the proposed legislation.

The US house of representatives last month passed the Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 bill with an amendment that makes Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) the only means by which domestic electronic surveillance for the purpose of gathering foreign intelligence information may be conducted.

The bill has been referred to the Senate Intelligence Committee, but the Committee is unable to proceed as the White House has repeatedly refused to hand over the relevant documents.

"Another critical priority for congressional oversight is government wiretapping of Americans, conducted under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, and, illegally, under the President's warrantless wiretapping program," Senator Russ Feingold said. "When the program was finally placed within the FISA process, an opportunity arose for the Administration and the Congress to move forward, under the law. Unfortunately, the Administration has yet to demonstrate a real interest in doing so."

Feingold accused the Administration of seeking broad new authorities unrelated to keeping FISA up-todate with new technology, and pursuing these authorities while refusing to rule out further surveillance activities entirely outside of the law.

"For more than four years, the Administration failed to inform the full congressional intelligence committees of the warrantless wiretapping program," said the Senator who cosponsored an ammendment by co-sponsor by Senator Feinstein to ensure that all members of the Committee receive, at a minimum, summary information about programs that the Administration has sought to limit to the Chairman and Vice Chairman. "In doing so, the Administration violated the National Security Act, which allows restricted notification to the “Gang of Eight” only in certain limited cases involving covert action."

In 2005 Bush acknowledged that he authorised the National Security Agency in 2002 to eavesdrop on US citizens communicating with people overseas.

16,000 police deployed to halt violence

london guardian
A multinational coalition of protesters will today begin their bid to physically prevent world leaders from gathering at the G8 summit despite widespread criticism of violent tactics during growing demonstrations in Germany.

Water cannons, riot vans and 16,000 police officers - one per protester - last night fanned out around the Baltic resort of Heiligendamm to end the protests.

More than 1,000 people were injured on Saturday in Rostock, the nearest city, in some of the most violent protests seen in postwar Germany. The authorities are desperate to avoid a repeat of the violence that marred the 2001 G8 in Genoa, where a student was shot dead by police.

As 8,500 people yesterday marched in Rostock in favour of "global freedom of movement and equal rights" - one of a series of themed protest days in the run up to the summit's opening tomorrow - hundreds more were in camps just outside the seven miles of steel and barbed wire fencing guarding the G8 venue.

Four miles from the fence, protesters set up their own security around a 4,000-strong camp in the village of Reddelich. A wooden watchtower has been built to survey the tents and police beyond.

While the atmosphere in the camp was relaxed, with bratwurst and beer on sale, a children's playground and bands and cabaret in the evening, groups also got to work practising how to evade capture and arrest by the police.

German police, newspapers and even some protesters have voiced doubts about the violent tactics during the weekend protests but organisers insisted their aim remained to shut down the G8 and their methods would be forceful.

Police said more than 400 officers and 520 demonstrators were hurt after a peaceful rally turned violent in Rostock on Saturday night.

Officers blamed the violence on 2,000 militants known as the "black block" - black-clad hooded and masked youths who attacked police lines. Forty-nine people were arrested yesterday.