Author: Allan M. Coleman

Allan is Israel Rising's American political analyst. He holds a masters in security and political analysis from the University of Missouri.
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[Premium] Trump’s Tariff’s Will Force Israel to Choose Between India and China

With all the flack President Trump has received on his steel tariff’s from the MSM, most observers are missing the point of the decision. Trump understands that China and the USA are already engaged in economic warfare, with China winning.  The tariffs are designed to balance out China’s trade policy.

More important than the effects of the tariffs, the signal from the Trump administration is that China is essentially American enemy number one.  This has a tremendous effect across the world.  With alliances consolidating from the east to west, Trump is trying to nudge allies to make a decision.

Israel is not immune to this challenge.  Since the early 2000’s it has courted both India and China with tremendous success.  Of course India is seen as more important and has been raised to the level of a strategic ally, which places Israel in the middle of the Indo-Chinese rivalry.

Up until now, Israel has been able to stay neutral on issues of dispute between China and India, yet with the USA making China into enemy number one, Israel appears to be heading towards a crossroads.  Of course, the decision in many ways was helped along by China’s actions towards India and its support of Pakistan which is an enemy of India and adversary of Israel.  China’s disregard of civil rights, persecution of opposition dissent, and the now appointement of President Xi for life make Israel’s decision that much easier.

What About the Chinese Investment Potential

While its true Israel will have to do away with Chinese money, the investments China has made seem to be part of a larger strategy of control.  One just needs to ask Zambia on how their ability to have self determination has gone since the Chinese have taken over the copper and coal industry there.

Zambia Reports published the following a few days ago: “The Zambia Association of Timber and Forestry Based Industry has alleged that about 5,000 mukula laden containers from Zambia have been exported to China following the ban on the exportation of timber species in 2017.”

According to the report the government appears to be working with China to help illegally export the mukula.  Of course China loves to insist that it is positively investing in Zambia.

Israel has deftly avoided going down the same route as Zambia and although the lure of Chinese investments can be great, Jerusalem realized early on that dealing with China is like a drug that feels great in the beginning but can be deadly down the line.

Trump’s tariff decision has now begun to force the concretization of new alignments that have already been underway.  As the trade wars and potential direct conflicts between China and the USA heat up, look for even more increased partnerships between Israel and India and a dampening of Israel-Chinese relations.

 

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Pompeo’s Entry Into the State Department May Be Seismic

Now that Rex Tillerson is on his way out and CIA Director Mike Pompeo set to replace him, it appears that President Trump may beginning to put together a core team for foreign policy that not only reflects Trump’s views but totes a particular ideological line.

Three aspects surrounding the Mike Pompeo appointment to the State Department should make it clear that this is no ordinary appointment.

Focus on China

Mike Pompeo has said numerous times that Russia, while a geopolitical concern is not really the main threat to the USA.  In Pompeo’s mind China is far dangerous to the USA in the long run and this threat must be tackled before it’s too late.

Pompeo may stand for protection of intellecutual property, says Jim Cramer from CNBC.

Standing with Israel

Mike Pompeo is known to be fierce critic of the Iran deal as well as a hawk when it comes to Israel.  This may be the first truly pro-Israel Secretary of State.  After 70 years of Arabists in the State Department, a real shift o Israel may finally be at thand.

Cleaning Out the Swamp

It seems one of the biggest reason Trump want Mike Pompeo is to clean out the State Department.  It may seem like a tall order, especially since the Deep State has been embedded in there since the early 20th century, but Pompeo is clearly has been given cart blanche to drain Foggy Bottom of its swamp creatures.

In conclusion, Pompeo’s appointment to Secretary of State presents a rare opportunity to entrust the position to someone whose ideology may finally gut the department and replace it with people aligned with America’s intrest.

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Bibi Netanyahu: “This will be remembered by our people through the ages”




Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Donald Trump held their first meeting after Trump’s dramatic decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.  In opening remarks President Trump spoke about his decision on Jerusalem.

“No one could get past Jerusalem, we’ve taken it off the table,” adding that he believes the Palestinians intend to return to the negotiating table, “and if they don’t, there will be no peace.”

In connection to his potential arrival for the US Embassy opening in Jerusalem, the President said the following: “We’re looking at coming. If I can, I will, but I’ll be there again. Israel is very special to me.”

Prime Minister Netanyahu said the following:

“Thank you. Mr. President, Donald, Melania, Sara and I want to thank you for your extraordinary friendship and hospitality. It’s always a pleasure to see you both.

This is the first time we meet Washington, America’s capital, after you declared, Mr. President, Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. And this was a historic proclamation, followed by your bold decision to move the embassy by our upcoming national Independence Day.

I want to tell you that the Jewish people have a long memory, so we remember the proclamation of the great king, Cyrus the Great, Persian king 2,500 years ago. He proclaimed that the Jewish exiles in Babylon could come back and rebuild our Temple in Jerusalem. We remember a hundred years ago, Lord Balfour, who issued the Balfour Proclamation that recognized the rights of the Jewish people in our ancestral homeland. We remember 70 years ago, President Harry S. Truman was the first leader to recognize the Jewish state. And we remember how a few weeks ago, President Donald J. Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Mr. President, this will be remembered by our people through the ages.

And as you just said, others talked about it; you did it. So, I want to thank you on behalf of the people of Israel, and I also look forward to our discussions on both challenges and opportunities.

If I had to say what is our greatest challenge in the Middle East to both our countries, to our Arab neighbors, it’s encapsulated in one word: Iran. Iran has not given up its nuclear ambitions. It came out of this nuclear deal emboldened, enriched. It’s practicing aggression everywhere, including on our own borders. And I think we have to stop this country that chants, “Death to Israel, death to America.” Iran must be stopped. That is our common challenge.

The second is seeking, because of that challenge, to exploit the opportunity for peace, because the Arabs have never been closer to Israel; Israel has never been closer to the Arab states. And we seek also to broaden that peace to the Palestinians.

So I look forward to those discussions, but I want to just reiterate what you just said: Mr. President, I’ve been here for nearly four decades with, talking, seeking to build the American-Israel alliance. Under your leadership, it’s never been stronger. And the people of Israel see your position on Jerusalem. They see your position on Iran. They see your magnificent defense of Israel and the truth in the United Nations. And I as prime minister see something that you as president see, but others can’t see. It’s the extent of our intelligence and other cooperation in matters that are vital for the security of both our peoples.

And Mr. President, I just want to say: Thank you for your leadership and thank you for your tremendous friendship”.

 

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ISRAEL MUST CHOOSE: China’s Planned Base in Pakistan Becomes a Serious Challenge to India

The Daily Caller has reported on a planned Chinese base for Pakistan on the Arabian sea.  This development comes along with the growing cooperation between the two countries via the Chinese-Pakistan Economic Corridor.

Daily Caller reported the following:

“In the last few months, there have been persistent reports of Chinese survey teams in the areas west of Gwadar, a seaport considered critical to the success of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the linchpin to China’s Belt and Road Initiative, an effort to achieve Chinese commercial dominance in South Asia and as a connection to its strategic interests in the Middle East and Africa.

In the last two weeks, meetings held between high-ranking Chinese and Pakistani military officers indicate that a new Chinese military facility will be built on the Jiwani peninsula between Gwadar and the Iranian border. The plan is said to include a naval base and an expansion of the already-existing airport on the peninsula, both requiring the establishment of a security zone and the forced relocation of long-time Balochi residents.”

Image Source: Wiki

The prospective Chinese military base in Gwadar would effectively give the Chinese direct access to the Middle East, but also strengthen Pakistan, a mutual rival to India. This development places Israel into a very uncomfortable position far more so than the Doklam dispute between China and India several months ago.

With Israel and India developing a long-term strategic partnership, Netanyahu’s government must decide how to navigate its relationship with China, which has been growing in terms of economic partnerships and Chinese investment into Israel’s infrastructure (i.e. the Ashdod port).

Small border disputes between India and China are one thing, but Chinese encirclement of India, while bolstering avowed enemies of the Jewish state is a completely different level.

In the coming months Israel must figure out how it relates to an expanding China that threatens to upend global norms and place Israel at risk.

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FISA-gate, Russian Collusion, and the KGB Infiltration into America’s Political Ecosystem

There are times when a country must come to the conclusion that they have been hacked.  Now I don’t mean an acutal computer hacking, but rather something far more sinister.  Both Democrats and Republicans have been pointing fingers at one another in an attempt to claim the other are traitors to the country.  Ever since the Russian collusion narrative was injected into the political discourse, the assumption has been that the Trump team willfully sought out Russian help in winning the election against Hillary.  This is of course highly speculative.  With the new revelations about the FISA warrant being issued due to spurious intelligence by the FBI as well as the Hillary Clinton Campaign’s ties to Fusion GPS as well as her connection to Uranium One, it appears that the Deep State and Hillary can also be accused of collaborating with the Russians if the same lack of deep thinking is applied.

The problem with all of these assumptions is that almost no one has looked at this the other way, because both sides are trying to knock the other side out.  It is far easier to believe that Putin who is a master at disinformation from his KGB days has set both sides up against one another and that this was his intention from the beginning.




With Hillary easily influenced through her foundation as well as the floating of a “damaging” dossier, Putin’s fingerprints are all over the initial setup.  All of this mirrors Russian tactics. The result would be easy at that point to lead the FBI Deep State on a witch-hunt during the election season.  Knowing that the dossier would spark a FISA warrant, Putin would only have to lure Donald Trump’s team, which was prone to dirt digging into a meeting with a Russian lawyer and that is in fact what actually happened.

What this shows everyone, is that it is in fact Putin from his days in the KGB who has been determined to destroy the USA from the inside.

Mike Rogers, former chairman of the House Intelligence Committee said as much in 2014:

“Putin is playing chess and I think we’re playing marbles,” Rogers said. “I don’t think it’s even close. If you look at the nuclear negotiations, we got our fanny handed to us. They took tactical nukes out of the equation; huge mistake, especially for our allies in the Baltics. When you move down the list in Syria, the Russians got everything that they believe they needed in Syria.”

“So they’ve been running circles around us,” Rogers continued. “And I really think it’s the naive position on the National Security Council and the president’s advisors that if we just keep giving things to Russia, they’ll finally wake up and say, boy, the United States isn’t all that bad. That is completely missing the motivation of why Russia does what Russia does.”

Nothing seems to have changed since then.

If the Democrats and the Republicans do not stop and pause and thus realize they are both the unwilling puppets of the Russian regime, the USA may find itself in a situation it will not be easy to dig itself out of. This will give Putin an advantage in the unfolding neo-Cold War and place America in a peril it has never seen before.

As President Lincoln stated: “A house divided against itself cannot stand.”

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John Kerry and His Palestinian Collusion Problem

While the case for the President colluding with Russia has come to be seen by most Americans as a witch hunt with very little legs, another issue of collusion seems to be creeping up.

The former Secretary of State, John Kerry has been reportedly working behind the scenes with the “Palestinian” leadership or let’s say it appropriately, colluding with the Palestinian Authority in hopes of obstructing the sitting President’s attempt at brokering a peace deal.

A report in Maariv, which was quoted by the Jerusalem Post said the following:

Kerry asked Agha to convey a message to Abbas and ask him to “hold on and be strong.” Tell him, he told Agha, “that he should stay strong in his spirit and play for time, that he will not break and will not yield to President Trump’s demands.” According to Kerry, Trump will not remain in office for a long time. It was reported that within a year there was a good chance that Trump would not be in the White House.

Kerry offered his help to the Palestinians in an effort to advance the peace process and recommended that Abbas present his own peace plan. “Maybe it is time for the Palestinians to define their peace principles and present a positive plan,” Kerry suggested. He promised to use all his contacts and all his abilities to get support for such a plan. He asked Abbas, through Agha, not to attack the US or the Trump administration, but to concentrate on personal attacks on Trump himself, whom Kerry says is solely and directly responsible for the situation.

According to the report, referring to the president, Kerry used derogatory terms and even worse. Kerry offered to help create an alternative peace initiative and promised to help garner international support, among others, of Europeans, Arab states and the international community. Kerry hinted that many in the American establishment, as well as in American intelligence, are dissatisfied with Trump’s performance and the way he leads America. He surprised his interlocutor by saying he was seriously considering running for president in 2020. When asked about his advanced age, he said he was not much older than Trump and would not have an age problem.

While everyone has the right to their opinion, it escapes me why John Kerry’s actions do not constitute a crime, especially since he is actively pursuing a 2020 run.

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FAKE NEWS: Andrea Mitchell Accuses Israel of Racism Against its Arab Lawmakers

Andrea Mitchell of MSNBC falsely accused Israel of racism with the following tweet about the protests that occurred inside the Knesset plenum during the Vice President’s speech:

Knesset Reporter & Analyst for The Jerusalem Post Lahav Harkov responded to Mitchell with th following Tweet:

Take a look at the video below.  This is not your typical protest in what is supposed to be respected environment.

The fact is, the Black Caucus would never be removed from the congress because they would never disrupt a foreign dignitary’s speech with such viceral hatred.  Unfortunately Andrea Mitchell and her leftist friends over a MSNBC continue to create an intersection between the Black civil rights movement and Arab/Palestnian rights in Israel.  No wherre do Arabs live more free in the Middle East than in Israel.

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Iranian Protests are Growing, Citizens Attempt to Take Over Revolutionary Guard Bases

There have been plenty of times when outside observers believed that a real revolution was underway in Iran.  The Green Movement of 2009 was the last such uprising only to fizzle out after a lack of support by Obama.  With Trump openly supporting the protestors over the last few days, these protests feel different. Western media has reported that the widespread protests over economic disparity have essentially morphed into an entire palette of anger thrusted against the theocratic regime in Tehran.

The regime has responded with full force and an attempt to block the internet.

Raman Ghavni has been reporting on the ground using his Twitter.  The latest tweet shows protestors doing the unthinkable and attempting to storm Revolutionary Guard bases.

As far as the size of the protests, the following infograph shows a growing movement:

Ironically the regime, which used sanctions as a way of deferring responsibility for their citizens’ economic plight has no such shield now that there are no real sanctions. Whether or not the current protests sweeping the country will overturn one of the world’s most despotic regimes is not clear.

What is obvious is that these protests are not isolated incidents nor are they small in nature.  While the Ayatollahs insist that they are foreign an funded and driven by Western agents, they have grown too large for anyone to believe that explanation.

In the next few days and weeks it will be critical for a leader or group of leaders to emerge in order for the protests to turn into a far wider revolution.

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Mueller Indicts Manafort, Is a Soft Coup Underway?

Paul Manafort the former campaign chairman for President Donald Trump and Manafort’s longtime business partner Rick Gates have been charged in a 12-count indictment with conspiracy against the United States, conspiracy to launder money and making false statements.

To most experts, these indictments issued by Special Counselor Robert Mueller III are only the beginning.  Retired Gen. Flynn who served as the head of the NSC for a brief time in the beginning of Trump’s term is under active investigation as are other members of Trump’s campaign.

The real question is whether Mueller will go as far as investigating and indicting Jared Kushner and Donald Trump Jr. who both met with Russian linked associates during the campaign. With Mueller on the roll, the investigation will be pushed ahead and risks entrapping Trump with the Nixonian decision to either let Mueller go the distance or fire him, which could bring about articles of impeachment by both Democrats and Republicans looking to take him down.

All of this of course appears to be a massive move by the Deep State to either pressure Trump to run the country according to their designs or face removal.  With Mueller making a political issue that much more divisive by only focusing on Trump when it has been proven that Hillary Clinton cavorted with the Russians during campaign, the special council risks tearing an already divided country apart.

Chaos, Russian Style

The investigation into Russian influence during the campaign appears to be Russian influenced itself.  Putin never had a winning horse in the race, but wanted to create the feeling he was involved in order to inflict doubt about the winner across the American public.  With Mueller’s probe continuing and both right and left at each other’s throats, Putin has begun to gain the upper hand against the USA by pushing its internal divisions to the extreme.  This has allowed Russia to take advantage of an administration that has been “under the proverbial gun” since the beginning.

For Putin, it doesn’t matter if Trump is removed or not, the mere fact that there is an investigation is enough to weaken America and allow Russia to assert control and influence over Eastern Europe and the Middle East.

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Iran, UNESCO, and President Trump’s Big Move

President Donald Trump is vigorously going after pillars of global “stability” at a lightning fast pace.  The State Department first rocked the international community this week when it would announce that the US would be quitting UNESCO by 2019 due to its inherent anti-Israel bias.

Second,the President himself gave a frank speech in which he announced is decision not to recertify the Iran nuke deal, punting the final decision to Congress.

These two decisions are the first shot across the bow of a rapidly changing Middle East that was allowed to plunge into chaos under the Obama Administration.  The Trump team understands that the Islamic decision to rewrite history using UNESCO in order to disconnect the Jewish nation from its own homeland is not just absurd but dangerous to America’s own sense of purpose. A world not governed by truth is one that is essentially filled with chaos.

This chaos has been used to allow Iran and Russia to essentially steer the future of the Middle East.  Trump’s removal of the US from UNESCO, which gave Israel the confidence to do the same is built around the message that globalism is not superior to moral clarity.   With all of the USA’s faults, it has still been viewed upon as a beacon freedom.  Trump is sending a message that those countries that stand with the US get first priority and in the Middle East, Trump is learning that Israel may be the most reliable.

President Trump’s decision not to recertify the Iran nuclear accord known as the JCPOA sends a serious message that Iran and its backers are scrambling to find a way to retaliate against.  Trump has now designated the Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist entity which places them within the bounds of the US military’s sights.

Trump said the following in part of his televised speech:

“The Iranian regime has committed multiple violations of the agreement, for example on two speared occasions they have exceeded the limit of 130 metric tons of heavy water, until recently, the Iranian regime has also failed to meet our expectation in its operation of advanced centrifuges. The Iranian regime has also intimidated international inspectors into not using the full inspection authorities that the agreement calls for. Iranian officials and military leaders have repeatedly claimed they will not allow inspectors onto military sites, even though the international community suspects some of those sites were part of Iran’s clandestine nuclear weapons program; there are also many people who believe that Iran is dealing with North Korea. I am going to instruct our intelligence agencies to do thorough analyses and report back their findings beyond what they have already reviewed. By its own terms the Iran deal was supposed to contribute to regional and international peace and security. And yet, while the U.S adheres to our commitment under the deal the Iranian regime continues to fuel conflict, terror and turmoil throughout the Middle East and beyond.”

Watch the full speech below:

Deputy commander of the Qods Force Ismail Ghaani told the Tanzim news agency:

“We are not a country that likes war, but any military threatening us will regret it. Trump is hurting America- we’ve buried many like him and we know how to fight the United States.”

Does this mean there will be war tomorrow?  Not necessarily, but Iran and Russia will not allow this to go quietly.  As for the Trump administration they understand that it is better to push back now than when Iran, backed by Russia and in partnership with Turkey finalizes its take over of the Middle East.  That would leave Israel surrounded and the USA locked out of a strategic region.

The globalists were hoping that President Trump would back off and toe the line, but it is clear that his foreign policy is built around America First, for better or worse. This makes for a rocky couple of next weeks that may see both the Middle East explode and the North Korean standoff break out into a full-blown war.

Yet, this multi-sphere conflict was set in motion the moment Obama decided to lower America and its allies stature within the world’s geopolitical arena.  Trump may seem like he is shaking the world, but he is heading off the ascendance of regimes that are totalitarian from do far more damage down the line.