vineri, 24 aprilie 2015


Gheorghe Gradinaru
July 10, 2014
The US may react to what Germany is currently doing – while the US doesn’t discuss this kind of issues in public, it may well decide to do so this time. However, the ultimate – and most important question is not related to how will the US react but how bad does Germany intend to handle the US-German relations. The “IF” in Merkel’s response to the matter indicates that Berlin will not go beyond limits…or maybe not.
Global Perspectives – Antonia Colibasanu, Stratfor » Blog Archive » Germany’s Dangerous Game (?)
Global Perspectives - Antonia Colibasanu, Stratfor
ANTONIACOLIBASANU.BLOGACTIV.EU

  • Fogarassy Paul "will not [...] …or maybe not." The answer is ... "will not"

  • Un Prospectiv .
    Stratfor. Ce altceva se mai poate spune? Ca Germania a inceput a avea pareri diferite cel putin dela INVAZIA in Irak incoace. Dar pentru Antonia la Stratfor, istoria incepe in 2006. Sau alaltaieri.

    http://www.ticls.org/about/acad-board/colibasanu

  • Un Prospectiv .
    Cum fraza Antoniei s-a imbolnavit de friedmanita, sa vedem ce ne spun cititorii NYTimes cu ocazia celei mai recente expulzari:

    Franz Aachen, Germany 4 hours ago
    Ms. Merkel has done a lot so far to calm down the growing resentment against the digital US violence. But now she is under political pressure to show her teeth. This means, the buffer of good will has been used up. This is a bad day for US-German relationships.

    Why are the USA so stupid to snub their closest partners with such silly behavior? Cynicism is a slow acting but devastating poison for a relationship. Following the Middle East disaster the USA are risking to loose the hearts and minds of Europeans for nothing. Events like this one result in distance and reduced empathy to support US politics. Instead, many Germans will vote for closer relationships to China and Russia, as we have already seen during the Ukraine crisis. The USA are giving their soft power away for small coin. We urgently need some robust actions from their side to repair the substantial damage and stabilize the slide of trust.

    Paul Vienna, Frankfurt, New York City 4 hours ago
    As a German with close family ties to the US, I view all this as pretty problematic - also for the US. 

    Germany generally considered the US as a close friend and ally, and most Germans looked up to this country. It was the land of free. But due to (in the eyes of many) unnecessary wars, and a huge and almost paranoid surveillance apparatus this is starting to change. Even people like me who have always been pro-american, and want things to remain like that, start to feel alienated. 

    Taking apart that countries of course spy on each other up to some extent, it is the way it is handled by the US, what makes us think. This is not the way you should treat a friend. 

    Also, in the eyes of many Germans there is no possible justification to give up the privacy and freedom of pretty much everyone just beacuse of some terrorists. Don't get me wrong, terrorism is a problem, inacceptable and needs to be fought - but not for the price of freedom. The end does not justify (all) means. Especially we know what we are talking about here. 

    Of course many americans might think: "so what, let the germans be angry", but you forget how important close friends are today. Germany is one of, or maybe the strongest power in europe, and an important trade partner. A lot of the US military infrastructure is based in and coordinated from Germany. Germans will surely not be an enemy, but maybe not a close friend anymore if things go on like this. I don't think that is worth it - for neither of us.

    Babeouf Ireland 5 hours ago
    The period in which the US government could treat the German government as the government of an occupied territory is coming to its inevitable end. I expect a lot of pointless blather from the US State Department which will eventually issue a statement that attempts to obscure every point of substance in the latest NSA/CIA debacle.

    Surgres New York 5 hours ago
    So Obama wants to spy on Germany, and yet he is completely surprised by the ISIS uprising in Iraq? Where are his priorities?
    All I know is that Obama in 2008 promised to "restore our moral standing so that America is once more the last, best hope for all who are called to the cause of freedom."
    http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=5682257

    It is amazing how arrogant and naive Obama sounds in retrospect. He really overplayed his strengths and overlooked his shortcomings, and that is coming back to hurt the US people.

  • Un Prospectiv .
    Phil Wheeler Los Angeles 5 hours ago
    And there are no German spies in the US, France, Russia or the UK? Time for the FBI to make a few arrests. The Germans have historically had one of the best foreign intelligence services in the world, and I'm sure     this is still the case. They've also now developed a high degree of hypocrisy.

    Clive Kewell Hamburg, In Reply to Phil Wheeler 
    1. We can´t afford as many spies as you can.
    2. Perhaps we are less paranoid or more naive than you are but certainly not more hypocritical.
    3. We are capable of learning from history. Are you ?
    4. If we have spies found out in your country then it is your right to kick them out or even be a little upset. Like us.

    Leopold von Ranke Maine 4 hours ago
    A number of observations for the larger picture:
    1. The United States has repeatedly acquired high-ranking sources (often unpaid) in West Germany during the Cold War, and later in united Germany as well (I know of only one case from the 1960s in the other direction). When such cases became apparent in the past, the German government resolved the matter quietly, i.e. removed the official from his post, or tacitly agreed with the United States on how to settle the matter. Since the matter is now made public with much fanfare, something else in the larger political framework has obviously changed. The identity of the leak might tell us its political intent.
    2. Both "spies" caught are German citizens who, from what the press reports so far, did it for money. "Deporting" them is therefore not an option, America isn't their home. It also begs the question who else (China, Russia?) they sold information to, and why the CIA thought it a good idea to acquire these particular sources.

    There is, then, obviously a lot more going on here than the eye can see. Whoever leaked this to the press embarrasses the US government, and makes both Obama and Merkel look like fools.
    Cui bono? Neither the United States nor Germany, nor the transatlantic alliance, will benefit from these shenanigans. Well done, CIA. The rewards are harvested in Moscow and Beijing, whose transgressions now take far less mindshare than they should.

  • Un Prospectiv .
    Steve Fankuchen Oakland, CA 4 hours ago
    I doubt that the Germans are naive and are at all surprised. But, like the U.S., when spies are outed, domestic political considerations necessitate visible displeasure and "retaliation."

    My guess is that the sin in this case is not spying but getting caught. If anything, it demonstrates continuing incompetence of America's intelligence apparatus. Combining operational incompetence with analytic myopia (spying on the committee investigating your spying !) is a sad commentary. Factor that in with the utter failure of intelligence regarding Iraq and Syria and you just have to hope that some day, some President will have the courage to take on the bloated, self-serving intelligence agencies and force them to serve American interests, not their own interests or transitory Washington politics.

    Willy Brandt Germany 4 hours ago
    Because some Americans here still seem to believe that the US has done nothing wrong, I feel the urge to comment on this article. The dumbest I think I read, was a 9/11 reference. Yes, the attacks were planned on German soil. But how does that give the CIA or NSA a reason to spy on the German government? Are people seriously implying that Germany knew of the planned attacks and withheld that information? That is ridiculous. The newest revelations have NOTHING to do with anti terrorism. The BND works closely together with its American counterparts. If they would find any information on terrorist attacks, the first thing they would do is share that information with the Pentagon. In fact, when the BND got suspicious of that spy they caught last week, the first thing they did was to ask the NSA if they had any information about him, believing that he worked for the Russians. But no, embarrassingly he worked for our closest ally.

    I must say, I am disappointed by the US. Americas actions undermines its own credibility. The United States of America, the beacon of the free world? I don't think that is true anymore.

    S. C. Mclean, VA 5 hours ago
    After extremely disparaging remarks by Polish Foreign Minister, now this, United States has become new Soviet Union in the eye of Europe.

  • Un Prospectiv .
    EBurgett US/Asia 3 hours ago
    Alliances turn on trust. Not blind trust, not naiveté, but trust. Every government in the world expects enemies and rivals to spy on them. And every government in the worlds expects that their allies will keep an eye on i    mportant political and potentially worrying developments. But not through spies but through the many channels of communication that have been built up over the years and decades.

    The BND and many American services have closely collaborated for decades. If the CIA resident in Berlin doesn't have friends in the BND who will give him a sense of how the parliamentary probe into the NSA is going, then perhaps he shouldn't be resident. I'm sure that more than a handful of BND directors are livid that the guy just didn't come to them and asked, but felt compelled to place a mole into their service.

    This is a stunning sign of mistrust, and this is a very serious real world problem, and not a storm in a teacup over hurt feelings. It makes the Germans wonder whether the current US administration still sees them as a close ally, or just as another satellite. And if it should turn out that Obama thinks of Germany as an inconsequential vassal state, he may be in for a big surprise. Also the Russians and the Chinese have trouble with Islamist terrorists (after all, the FSB warned the FBI about the Tsarnaevs!) and maybe the BND will find it expedient to collaborate with the Russians and the Chinese. After all, a wise enemy is better than a foolish friend.

    Donriver Toronto 5 hours ago
    I note with amusement that US patriots are poohing-poohing the practice of spying on allies in this article, while thumping their chests and asking for war against China in the adjacent article about China spying on the US.

    Mel Farrell New York 4 hours ago
    What an embarrassment; to have one of our closest allies expel an American for espionage activities, sanctioned by our government. 

    How much longer could anyone expect nations such as Germany, to put with the arrogance, and holier than thou attitude of the United States. 

    Since Mr. Snowden outed us it seems we have stood idly by, somehow or other hoping we could rest on our laurels, believing our reputation would get us over this latest bump.

    We neglected to consider though, that for years now, we have been systematically destroying our reputation, not only overseas, but here at home as well.

    As Americans, we need to put a stop to these treasonous actions of our government, before they destroy what little reputation and liberty we have left.

    Utter imbeciles.

  • Un Prospectiv .
    Mediator Germany 3 hours ago
    There is a slow but steady decrease of trust into the USA and its government by the german population.
    The USA is loosing credibility of beeing a trustfull parter and ally.

    It's not so much a problem that a country tries to inquire secret informations about the intention of other governments. People just get more and more concerned about global communication beeing highjacked, saved and abused by US services.

    The end does not justify all means and it is hightly doubtfull that the US services are effective at all. Ukraine and ISIS are just 2 keywords that show the ineffectivnes when it comes to important issues.

    The USA might be able to intercept world communication, but it is not able to solve any big issue in the world unilaterally. Loosing support and sympathy of key allies makes it hard to get alliances of key countrys in the world working.

    Loosing credibility in the german and european population makes it much harder for european countrys to cooperate with the US in matters that are important but unpopular.

    Looking at the cost-value ratio of the US spying on allies it is definetly a loss for the US.

    German history had 2 dictatorships in the outcome of World War I.
    Characteristic for both of them was a vast system of spying and controlling civilians with secret service and police.
    Power always needs control and proportion. I see no system of Checks and Balance when it comes to the control of US services. 

    Bad for the world and bad for the US population.

    Linde Fuchs Berlin 4 hours ago
    (1) We all should be able to recognize, that the "services" in the US and other countries of the "five eyes" alliance are not very well aligned with their governments intentions but repeatedly require the governments to align with their needs (legislation is only made ex post - and often in secrecy - to give the actions a legal veil).

    (2) It seems obvious that the political Administration in Washington CAN not deliver on the demands of other nations regarding "clarity" about the attacks since it has lost the power to do so. (e.g.: See Feinsteins reaction, when she had to learn, that her own committee was subject to activity of the services.)

    (3) The "services" are not adhering to law in Germany and they do not adhere to US law either. Making them a power that is just formally bound into the structure of the constitutional state, de facto standing above it.

    (4) There is no "checks and balances" when it comes to the services. The Patriot Act and the creation of the Homeland Security Administration created a unified executive body, which is now taking control of one branch after the other.

    Dear friends: Please consider, whether you have in fact a secret services (in the sense of "Intelligence Services") or a already a "secret police". Perhaps we should talk then how to get rid of a secret police once it has gotten hold of your lives (cheer up: Can be done. Was done here several times - once payed dearly with the life of you best!).

    Volker Schmidt Frankfurt Germany 2 hours ago
    Hm, since spying is done by everybody, so I assume you feel it is ok, if the german intelligence service would infiltrate your computers at home, read all your emails, tapes your conversations, collect private pictures ... or did I forget that freedom and liberty should be restricted to the land of the free?
    Well, for now I think the german public will have learned that the US has no respect for for any of the things we attribute to be the foundation of the western alliance.
    I aggree it was stuppid of us germans to hold the US to higher levels of trust than we did with russia or china. In the long term I think we have learned a valueable leason here, and I think it will liberate germany in some ways. If you ask if that is a good thing for the US, I think I would doubt it.

  • Un Prospectiv .
    " The glaring paradox of West Germany's former pacifism was that it was only made possible by the American nuclear umbrella." Daca recenta Teza Malita despre razboiul Rece este adevarata, povestea asta se risipeste precum fumul focului de iarna...

    http://www.spiegel.de/.../as-us-scandals-grow-germans...

  • Smaranda Dobrescu Imi vine greu sa cred in reactii sau hotarari spontane in domenii atat de importante. Istoria ne-a demonstrat atatea exemple de pretexte..

  • Un Prospectiv .
    Cum arata si dl. Severin, o Romania harcea-parcea poate deveni oricand vulnerabilitate de sistem

    http://inpolitics.ro/scandalul-eads-romania-teren-de...
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