Foreign Digest: Ecuador and Venezuela

The Leftist Presidential Candidate Was Defeated in the Ecuadorian Elections: A centrist businessman and former Member of Parliament won the presidential elections in Ecuador a week ago, versus a leftist candidate. The election is a rejection of the leftist candidate’s mentor, a former President convicted of corruption who had continued to wield influence on Ecuador’s politics. An ally of the Venezuelan Socialists, the former President had supported the Marxist narco-terrorists in Columbia that were backed by Venezuela. The current President is also a member of the liberal party, but not as far to the left as his predecessor. The leftist candidate had promised to bring back her mentor’s welfare spending, but the businessman promised to maintain the free market. Venezuelan Deal Between the Socialist Dictatorship and the Opposition: A deal has been reached between the Socialist dictatorship in Venezuela and the democratic opposition, mediated by the United States. The bans by the regime on opposition candidates would be lifted and there would be moderately free and fair elections that meet international standards by late 2024, in exchange for the loosening of American economic sanctions for signing the deal and more sanctions relief if Venezuela implements the deal. There remains, however, distrust that the Socialist regime, which has ruled since 2000 after usurping representative governance, would honor its commitments in the vaguely worded deal, as it has a poor track record on keeping promises, as it does on respecting human rights. Indeed, no state media coverage was allowed for today’s opposition primary elections. As I had posted about, the opposition won a veto-proof two-thirds majority in the last elections of the national assembly six years ago, but the Socialists barred some delegates from taking their seats to keep their totals under two-thirds and then invoked a constitutional provision to appoint a different body as a national legislature, effectively eliminating the power of that chosen by the Venezuelan people. The assembly leader then invoked a different constitutional provision to declare himself President, which the U.S. and many Latin American and Western States recognized, but his term has since expired, necessitating new elections.

Terrorists Are to Blame for Civilian Deaths in War

The errant rocket fired by terrorists in the Gaza Strip last week that hit an Arab hospital was the fault of the terrorists, not only for launching the war, but firing such weapons in civilian areas. Islamists use people, including both hostages and their own people, as human shields, establishing firing positions and placing stores of munitions in residential neighborhoods, including even in mosques, contrary to the laws of war. The strike against the hospital in Gaza is a reminder of the blaming by isolationists on both the left and the far right of the United States for high estimated civilian death tolls from the Liberation of Iraq, which was a battle that began in 2003 in the War on Terrorism. The war began after the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks against America by al-Qaeda, the Islamist Terrorists based in Afghanistan with affiliates around the Islamic world. Baathist Iraqi forces under Saddam Hussein fired indiscriminately from civilian areas, with their own weapons striking civilians, and engaged in the aforementioned type of war crimes. The Baathist regime also fomented an Islamist insurgency by creating the Fedayeen, which launched an insurgency against the U.S. and its coalition allies after the overthrow of Hussein, which Baathists and Islamists like al-Qaeda joined, working together. Furthermore, Islamist terrorists had been present in Iraq, namely Al-Qaeda in Iraq, which later split off into the “Islamic State.” Other jihadists from around the Islamic world were attracted to Iraq, where they murdered innocent civilians. They especially targeted Shi’ites to foment division between them and Sunni Muslims, which was unsuccessful. These jihadists focused on Iraq, instead of Afghanistan, as they recognized its significance as a battlefield in the War on Terrorism. They would have been killing people in Afghanistan or elsewhere around the world had they not traveled to Iraq, where thousands of them were captured or killed in a crushing defeat. Moreover, as terrorists are civilians, they and those who harbor or finance them may sometimes be included in the totals of civilians killed, but should not be counted as deaths of innocent civilians.

Hamas-Israeli War Updates: Iranian-Sponsored Attacks and North Korean Arms

Hezbollah: Since both not long before and after the Hamas-led terrorist attacks from the Gaza Strip against Israel earlier this month, the Israelis have continued to strike Hezbollah and Iranian targets in Syria. Hezbollah is the Lebanese Shi’ite terrorist organization backed by Iran, the world’s worst state sponsor of terrorism, and Syria, led by the tyrannical Assad regime. As I wrote in my last post, there have been incursions and rocket attacks from Lebanon by Hezbollah against Israel/ Israel has also struck Hezbollah targets in Lebanon. Iran, which sponsors Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, both of which conducted massive terrorist attacks on Israel earlier this month, does not recognize Israel’s right to exist. Other Iranian-Backed Attacks: Meanwhile, there were drone attacks last week against an American base in Iraq. Such attacks are usually committed by Iranian-backed terrorists. The United States maintains a military presence in Iraq and Syria against other Islamist terrorists, namely al-Qaeda and its offshoot, the Islamic State. U.S. Navy ships operating in the Red Sea also intercepted missiles fired by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen. North Korea: Communist North Korea supplies weapons to Hamas, just as it does to Iran, which are among the reasons why North Korea is a state sponsor of terrorism.

The Ruling and Another Far-Right Party Lost Votes and Seats in the Polish Parliamentary Elections

The ruling far-right nationalist and populist party won the most votes and seats in the Polish parliamentary elections today, but with much fewer than the last election and well short of a majority necessary to form a government. A smaller pro-Russian far-right party also suffered a worse showing than before. Turnout was higher than ever — even more than the first multi-party elections in 1989 in which the Communists were defeated, as a bloc of three opposition parties, led by a conservative party whose leader is a former Polish Prime Minister and European Union (EU) President, collectively obtained a comfortable majority of the vote. At issue was liberty and representative government, as the governing party has eroded the rule of law over its eight years in power by diminishing the independence of the judiciary, and gained more power over the media and the electoral process, while increasing control over the private sector, which has led to cronyism. It has also increased spending, which exacerbates inflation. The EU, of which Poland is a member, has withheld funds because of the Polish Government’s rising authoritarianism. With the notable xception of Ukrainian refugees, the ruling Polish party has also been anti-migrant, opposing reasonable EU reforms of migration policy, together with far-right authoritarian Hungary. Poland, an ally of the United States as a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, has been a critical ally of neighboring Ukraine against aggression by the Russian Federation. The center-right opposition leader would continue the support for Ukraine. The Polish President will have to give a mandate to the current Prime Minister from the same party to try to form a government because it had won the most seats, but it will not be able to obtain the necessary majority in Parliament to win a vote of confidence. Instead, the opposition parties across the political spectrum will have to form a coalition, as they have expressed a willingness to do, to restore representative governance to Poland, vanquish far-right authoritarianism and xenophobia, and strengthen both NATO and the EU.

Conservative Thoughts on the Hamas Terrorist Attacks on Israel

Hamas, the Iranian-backed Muslim Arab terrorist organization that controls the Gaza Strip, last week launched the deadliest terrorist attacks ever on Israel with rockets targeting civilian residences, killing well over a thousand people, injuring thousands of others and taking scores of hostages. Hamas was joined by the Islamic Jihad, which is also sponsored by the Islamic Republic of Iran, the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism, and the Al-Aqsa Brigades. Among the casualties and hostages are people from around the world, including many Americans. In the meantime, there have been some incursions and attacks against Israel from Lebanon by the Shi’ite terrorist organization Hezbollah, which is also backed by Iran. Sometimes liberals and far-right isolationists minimize the threat of terrorism when it is not targeted directly at Americans as “not a threat to us,” such as when Saddam Hussein financially sponsored suicide bombers in Israel, who sometimes targeted and killed Americans. The current terrorist attacks in Israel are reminders, however, that the threat from terrorism against anyone in the world is a threat to everyone, as terrorists target innocent civilians randomly, which often includes visiting foreigners. Americans, like everyone else, have the freedom to travel abroad to make pilgrimages, visit family, receive formal education or healthcare, engage in commerce, and to be tourists. Terrorism inhibits that freedom. Therefore, it is in the interests of the United States and the international community to defeat terrorism everywhere. It is necessary not only to remove Hamas from power in the autonomous Gaza Strip and to destroy it and its allies, but to deter state sponsors of terrorism, like Iran. Terrorist organizations must be opposed globally and defeated through denial of safe havens from which terrorists train and of funding, and through police or military action, as well as through persuasion that terrorism is an illegitimate form of warfare, regardless of their cause. State sponsors of terrorism must be deterred in various ways. Moreover, it is essential to end terrorism by never rewarding it by being intimidated to give into the demands of the terrorists.

Conservative Republicans Have Launched “Republicans for Ukraine” to Counter the Pro-Russian Trumpist GOP Wing

A conservative anti-Trump organization has launched a new initiative to counter the pro-Russian Trumpist wing of the Republican Party. Defending Democracy Together has launched Republicans for Ukraine to support continued American military aid for Ukrainian independence, sovereignty and freedom against aggression, war crimes and genocide by the Russian Federation, which had recognized Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity: We're Republicans standing for Ukrainian freedom. - Republicans For Ukraine (gopforukraine.com). Russia is led by an ex-Soviet intelligence officer who is trying to restore the Soviet Union and who has been interfering in American politics with propaganda and disinformation, which helped Donald Trump win the GOP nomination and the presidency in 2016. The initiative comes at a time when the significant pro-Putin wing of the Republican Caucus in the United States House of Representatives has blocked military aid to Ukraine, even though opposing aggression has been a fundamental principle of American foreign policy and a fundamental principle of conservative foreign policy, and even though far-right Trumpists claim to be defenders of the principle of sovereignty. Conservatives had staunchly opposed the Communist Soviet Union during the Cold War. It is disturbing to many of us conservatives that some who claim to be conservative today would support a tyrannical, aggressive ex-Soviet intelligence officer trying to restore the Soviet Union. But it is an obvious example of how Trumpism is anathema to conservatism. As I have posted, there have been numerous organizations formed by Republicans and conservatives and various initiatives to counter Trump and Trumpism, a populist mix of protectionism, nativism, isolationism, deception, corruption, disloyalty, cruelty and authoritarianism. These organizations stand for true conservative principles of liberty, morals, civic virtue, the free market, and a strong defense.

Columbus Day is for Celebrating the Greatest Discovery that Re-United the Two Hemispheres; Thanksgiving is for Celebrating Indigenous People

The federal and state holiday of Columbus Day is for celebrating the greatest discovery of all time, when the two Hemispheres of the world were re-united after thousands of years of separation, because of the great observational and navigational skills of Christopher Columbus in October 12, 1492. It is not the time to honor the culture and accomplishments of the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas, for which Thanksgiving is a more appropriate time The Indigenous Peoples are credited for walking across a land bridge from Asia to North America that temporarily formed during the Ice Age when sea levels were much lower. Columbus and his crew had to sail thousands of miles in uncharted waters across the ocean in small wooden ships, relying only on the clock, the compass and the skill of dead reckoning as navigational aids. And he had to be able to find his way back to his home port and back again for the discovery to have meant anything more than previous legendary discoveries by Europeans of the Americas. The point of celebrating Columbus Day is not to celebrate those who were already in the New World, but America as established by the European explorers, colonists and missionaries who made it into the land of opportunity, prosperity, equality, freedom and representative government that it has become. Furthermore, because Columbus was Italian and Catholic and was working for the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, for whom evangelization was a priority in funding the Genoese sailor’s exploration mission, the purpose of honoring Columbus is to acknowledge the contributions of immigrants beyond those of the Northern European and Protestant plurality. When Columbus Day was first celebrated as a federal holiday, it was in direct opposition to nativists who were bigoted against Southern and Eastern Europeans and Jews who were immigrating in large numbers at the time. But now, despite a resurgence of nativism on the Far Rright, it is the Far Left that opposes honoring Columbus because of their anti-Western Civilization and anti-Christian hatred, in addition to ignorance about the meaning of the word discovery, which means to “uncover,” which does not require one to be the first to be credited with a discovery, but allows for independent discoveries. Leftists therefore deny the proper credit for Columbus’ independent discovery of the Western Hemisphere, which represented a discovery from the European perspective, and even his first discoveries of a western and oceanic route to the Americas, among other major scientific discoveries, because leftists falsely think it minimizes the Indigenous People and their culture and contributions to America. A more appropriate time to honor Indigenous Peoples is on Thanksgiving, when Americans give thanks to God for the blessings of liberty and their bounty, in the tradition of the first English colonists who gave thanks to God and for their friendship with the Native Americans who taught them how to farm native crops in the New World. By giving each their own holiday, instead of only to one group, then one does not compete with or diminish the other and the contributions to America of everyone are appreciated.

Foreign Digest: Armenia, Georgia, Slovakia, and Moldova

Armenia: Armenia has joined the International Criminal Court. The move is a blow to erstwhile ally, the Russian Federation, as the ICC has issued an arrest warrant for war crimes committed as part of Russian aggression against Ukraine for Russian tyrant Vladimir Putin, the ex-Soviet intelligence officer who has been trying to restore the Soviet Union. Membership in the ICC obligates arrest of those for whom a warrant has been issued, which thus precludes Putin from visiting Armenia. Russia failed to protect ethnic Armenians in the formerly self-governing territory of Nagorno-Karabakh within Azerbaijan, despite its role as a peacekeeper since a 2020 war between the two former Soviet Republics in the Caucasus, their second since independence in 1991. The vast majority of the population of Nagorno-Karabakh have already fled their ancestral homeland to Armenia. Georgia: Georgia’s President has expressed concern over a Russian plan for a naval base on Georgian soil in a breakaway territory on the Black Sea recognized by the Russia Federation as independent. Russia invaded two separatist territories in the former Soviet Republic of Georgia in 2008 and set up puppet governments it recognized as independent. Only a handful of authoritarian States around the world have also recognized the territories’ independence. Russian forces, which Russia had pledged to withdraw, repeatedly further encroached on Georgian territory. Slovakia: Slovakia accuses Russia of interference in its election last week, in which a pro-Russian leftist party won the most votes in the parliamentary elections. As the party fell short of even a quarter of the vote, a coalition government would certainly be necessary, although the leader of the winning party, a former Prine Minister, has been given a mandate by the President to try to form a government. Slovakia, an ally of the United States as a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, has been providing military aid to Ukraine against Russian aggression, which the leftist party opposes. Under Putin, who aspires to re-unite the Soviet Union, Russia interferes in elections not only in former Soviet Republics and satellites, but also in Western States and the United States with propaganda, disinformation and cyberattacks. It had even attempted a violent coup in Montenegro in 2016. Moldova: The President of Moldova last week accused Kremlin-associated Russian mercenaries of plotting a violent coup d’etat in the former Soviet Republic by provoking violent protests and attacks against the Moldovan government. Thousands of Russian Federation troops are in a breakaway part of Moldova where there is a Russian-speaking ethnic minority on the border with Ukraine, against Moldova’s intent. Communist and Socialist parties in Moldova support Russia. Moldova aspires to membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the European Union.

The United States Diplomatic Recognition of the Cook Islands and Niue

The United States recently diplomatically recognized the Cook Islands and Niue as independent States. The tiny Pacific Ocean island States are in free association with New Zealand, an American ally. The step is a counter to Communist China’s assertive influence in the Pacific. The U.S. has signed security deals with Australia, the Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea and the Philippines, in addition to those it already has with several other Pacific States. As a Pacific power, there are American bases in Guam and the Northern Marianas, in addition the oceanic coast of the homeland.

Foreign Digest: Philippines and China, Kosovo and Bosnia, and Poland

Philippines and Communist China: The Philippines last week removed a barrier on one of the disputed Spratley Islands that had been set up as a navigational obstacle by Communist China against Filipino fishermen and to reinforce the Chinese claim to the island. The Spratleys are disputed between China (and also the Republic of China on Taiwan), which claim most of the South China Sea, and the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei, which each claim some of the islands. Every State has a presence on at least one of the islands. The Economic Exclusion zone of the Philippines, with its fishing rights, extends to the island claimed by China. At stake in the South China Sea also are mineral rights, particularly for oil. Kosovo and Bosnia: The North Atlantic Treaty Organization announced last week that it is increasing its peacekeeping force presence in Kosovo after a deadly attack by ethnic Serbs against Kosovar police. Kosovo broke away from Serbia after a war in 1999, following the breakup of the former Serb-dominated Yugoslavia in 1991. Yugoslavia and then its rump, Serbia, was led by its last Communist leader who fomented ethnic hatreds in the diverse countries and caused multiple wars and atrocities. Serbia had massed troops on the border with Kosovo, whose independence it does not recognize, unlike the United States and most European States, but withdrew some today after NATO members had warned it. There are a small minority of Serbs, who are Slavs and Orthodox Christians, in northern Kosovo I posted about this summer. Kosovo is mostly inhabited by ethnic Albanians, who are predominately Muslim with some Orthodox Christians. Meanwhile in another former Yugoslav Republic, Bosnia and Herzogivina, the ethnic Serbian Republic within it that was formed within it in 1995 after the bloody war of independence is again threatening secession. The other constituent Bosnian Republic is a confederation of Croats (who are kin with Serbs, but are Roman Catholic), and Bosniaks (who are Muslim Slavs). Poland: A million Poles rallied in Warsaw, Poland today in opposition to the far-right nationalist authoritarian government of Poland and in support of representative government ahead of parliamentary elections next week. Former President and European Union head Donald Tusk leads the conservative party in the elections that are expected to be close. Poland is an ally of the United States as a member of NATO and against the Russian aggression against Ukraine. Poland was a Communist satellite State of the Soviet Union, which the current tyrannical leader of the Russian Federation, an ex-Soviet intelligence officer, is trying to reconstitute. The current Polish Government had supported Ukraine until a recent dispute over grain exports. It is also part of an anti-migrant axis with Hungary.

The Latest Russian Support of Militant Islamism

I have posted before how the Russian Federation, under ex-Soviet intelligence officer Vladimir Putin, has supported Islamism in a number of ways, despite its appeal to far-right Westerners as some kind of a bulwark against terrorism and Muslims generally. I noted Putin’s appointment of a tyrannical Islamist Governor of Chechnya and his support for the terrorist-sponsoring tyrannical Syrian regime that is backed by the Islamic Republic of Iran, the worst state sponsor of terrorism in the world, and how Russia works with the Iranian-backed Lebanese Shi’ite organization, Hezbollah. And observers have noted the high proportion of foreign jihadist fighters in Syria were from Russia. The latest example of Russian support for militant Muslims is in the Southern Caucasus. Russia had mediated an end to the second war between the former Soviet Republics of Azerbaijan and Armenia in 2020 and provided peacekeepers after the former regained land from the latter and gained control of the corridor between Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, the separatist ethnic Christian Armenian region within mostly Muslim Azerbaijan. The Russian peacekeepers allowed Azerbaijan to cut off the corridor linking Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia since last year, depriving the residents of food and supplies. They were unable to stop the Azerbaijani offensive last week that forced the separatists to surrender. Although supplies are finally reaching the ethnic Armenian region and the Azerbaijani Government promises to respect the religious and political liberty of the Armenians, the residents are skeptical of the Azerbaijani Government, as Azerbaijan is an unfree State. A mass exodus of the 120,000 residents of Nagorno-Karabakh is beginning. Armenia, which is a member of a defensive pact with Russia, is increasingly turning to the West as a more reliable protector of its independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity versus a Russian tyrant who has his own interest in supporting Azerbaijan and is violating the independence, sovereignty and territory of another former Soviet Republic with its aggression against Ukraine.

Foreign Digest: Afghanistan, Mali and Niger and Migration

Afghanistan: A United Nations report last week found the Taliban militia regime of Afghanistan violates human rights with arrests, torture and denial of due process to prisoners. This facet of Taliban rule is only one aspect of its tyranny. The Taliban, who are not internationally recognized as the legitimate Afghan government, returned to power in 2021 after the disastrous Trump-Biden withdrawal of United States and allied forces who had been protecting the Afghan Government against the return to power of the Islamist, tyrannical Taliban who were state sponsors of terrorism. The U.S. had led an international coalition to overthrow the Taliban for harboring al-Qaeda, the Islamist terrorists responsible for the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks on America, which killed a record nearly 3,000 people. Mali and Niger: The United Nations force for Mali, which was been aiding the State in the Sahel region of Africa since 2013 against Islamist terrorists, has gradually been withdrawing at the request of the Malian military junta. French forces, who had already been forced to withdraw, had been effective in aiding the former French colony, but U.N., Malian and Kremlin-backed Russian mercenaries have not. There have been multiple military coups against Malian governments regarded as ineffective against the violent jihadists, but attacks and casualties have increased and Islamists doubled the territory they control. Meanwhile, separatist Tuareg rebels have taken up arms again, claiming Malian forces have violated a deal; they had been allied with the Islamist terrorists before they and the terrorists turned on each other. There has been a similar result in Niger, one of three States in the Sahel that have suffered military coups because of perceived ineffectiveness against the Islamist rebels, and which then rejected Western military support, without any transition back to civilian rule or elections. France, the region’s former colonial ruer, and the United States maintain forces in Niger as a bastion in the fight against Islamist terrorism, but the Nigerien coup leaders have demanded French troops withdraw. Migration: Pope Francis on the Catholic Church’s World Day of Migrants and Refugees today emphasized the right to emigrate or not to be forced to, encouraged the saving of lives of migrants at sea, the welcoming of migrants with Christian love and through more legal channels for migration, and the fair sharing of the burden of providing for them while processing their claims, particularly noting the increased migration in the Mediterranean region. The Head of State of Vatican City and leader of the Holy See as Bishop of Rome dismissed the categorization of migration as an “invasion” or an “emergency,” which is used for anti-migrant propaganda against those fleeing persecution, war, disaster, or desperate economic circumstances for a better life.

The Reagan Foundation Rejects Donald Trump

The Reagan Foundation and Institute that manages the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library has declined to invite the non-conservative Donald Trump to speak at the presidential center for the conservative President. A member of the Board of Trustees said that many things Trump did and said were “not consistent with the Reagan philosophy.” President Ronald Reagan’s cheerful optimism and willingness to work with the opposition party congenially, versus the extreme stridency of Trump were cited as a difference. The Reagan Foundation earlier this month joined the statement lead by the Presidential Foundation of another conservative Republican President, George W. Bush, that I posted about against threats to civility, liberty and representative government, which was a thinly veiled response to Trumpism. Trumpism is a populist mix of ideas, including acceptance of authoritarianism, as opposed to the independence of the judiciary, the rule of law, and constitutional principles such as the separation of powers and States’ rights. President Reagan, whose opponents Donald Trump had donated to, was in favor of such principles and freedom, and opposed to dictatorship. Three other main Trumpist ideas are the direct opposite of Reagan-Thatcher conservatism: 1) protectionism, which is a tax increase on imports to protect domestic production and is thus against free market competition; 2) isolationism, which opposes the defense of American principles, interests and security abroad as part of the defense of the independence and sovereignty of the United States; and 3) nativism, which is based on hatred or exaggerated fears of migrants, including refugees seeking asylum from persecution, instead of proudly recognizing the attraction of universal ideas like equality, liberty and representative government in America and the contributions of those who come here who appreciate freedom and pursue the American Dream.

Twenty-Second Anniversary of the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks

Today is the twenty-second anniversary of the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks against America that targeted the World Trade Center in New York City and the heqadquarters of the United States Department of Defense (the Pentagon) in the Virginia suburbs of the District of Columbia with three hijacked civlian aircraft that were crashed into them, and another liner that crashed in western Pennsylvania after the passengers rose up agains their Islamist terrorist hijackers. The attacks were the deadliest in world history, killing nearly 3,000 people. The al-Qaeda terrorist organization, based in Afghanistan, was responsible for the attacks. The U.S. led an international coalition to overthrow the Afghan Taliban militia in 2002 that had harbored al-Qaeda and also targeted the terrorist organization directly, as the first campaign of a global War on Terrorism that continues. But after the disastrous Trump-Biden withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, the Taliban have taken over the whole of Afghanistan. Although al-Qaeda and its offshoot, the Islamic State, have suffered severe blows in the War on Terrorism, I have posted on the ongoing threat from Islamist militancy that requires continued sacrifice and vigilance. But today, in addition remembered those who died on September 11 and those who have given their lives in the War on Terrorism and who have been killed in many subsequent terrorist attacks, I also acknowledge those rescuers at the World Trade Center who have experienced deadly respiratory health problems every since they arrived on the scene in the days and weeks after the attacks thinking not of themselves, but of trying to save others. They are surely indirect victims of the terrorist attrocity. May we remember all the victims who died and those who still suffer, and may we remain ever-vigilant and willing to defend our security and freedom from the threat from Islamist militants around the world.

Statement from Thirteen Presidential Foundations for Liberty and Representative Government

The foundations that manage the presidential libraries of thirteen former Presidents of the United States have issued an unprecedented joint statement about strengthening liberty and representative government in the face of current challenges: Strengthening our Democracy | George W. Bush Presidential Center (bushcenter.org). The statement in support of pluralism, civility and American leadership in promoting freedom abroad, which it recognizes as beneficial to U.S. security, is recognized as an implicit reference to the threat from Trumpism. Led by the George W. Bush Presidential Center, the foundations of every President from Herbert Hoover to Barack Obama, with the sole exception of the foundation for Dwight Eisenhower, signed the extraordinary statement, thus including those of every living former President, who personally approved the statement, except Donald Trump. The former Presidents included Republicans, Democrats, liberals, moderates and conservatives. The foundations were created by federal legislation in 1955, starting with the former living Presidents at the time, making Hoover’s the one for the earliest President. The George W. Bush Presidential Center has been particularly active in promoting human rights, including in a bipartisan manner. As I have posted, Trumpism is a populist mix of protectionism, nativism, isolationism, dishonesty, corruption, disloyalty, cruelty and authoritarianism, all of which are anathema to conservatism. The authoritarianism was manifest in violations of the principles of judicial independence, the rule of law, the separation of powers, and States’ rights, as well as undermining American leadership on human rights.

Mass Protests against Syrian Tyranny

There have been mass protests in the south of Syria for weeks, in a predominantly Druze area that has been mostly peaceful during the Syrian Civil War. The protests are the first significant ones in Syria since last year. At first, the demonstrations were against inflation, but now also are about ending the tyrannical Baathist regime of Bashar Assad. There have also been some isolated protests elsewhere in the majority Muslim Arab State. Syria has been in civil war since 2011, which has killed over half a million people, displaced 12 of the 25 million Syrians, including 5 million who fled Syria. The Islamist Republic of Iran and its terrorist allies and the Russian Federation back Assad in the multi-sided war that includes both moderate and Islamist rebels. Some rebels are backed by Turkey while the United States supports the Syrian Democratic Force, which is made of Kurds and some others. The SDF has been fighting against the Islamic State, the offshoot of al-Qaeda, the terrorist organization responsible for the deadliest attacks in history, the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks against America that killed nearly 3,000. The U.S. led an international coalition that defeated the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria and maintains a small force to complete the destruction of the bloody terrorist organization. The Kurds remain outside the control of Assad, as do a few other rebels. Meanwhile, Israel continues to strike Iranian and Iranian-backed terrorist targets in Syria.

An Entire Martyred Family’s Beatification for Saving Jews During the Holocaust Includes a Newborn

The Catholic Church today in Poland beatified nine members of the Ulma Family who were summarily executed by the Nazis and local Polish police collaborators for harboring eight Jews from the Holocaust. A Vatican Cardinal performed the ceremony while Pope Francis read a statement from the Holy See that was broadcast on screens in the Polish town where the Ulma’s martyrdom for “hatred of the faith” took place after the-deeply Christian family were betrayed by a local policeman. The eight Jews they had sheltered were also killed, among the three million Jews and six million Poles killed by the Nazis in the Holocaust. It was unprecedented that an entire family (parents and seven young children) was beatified, which literally means to be called “blessed,” as a sign that their souls were saved and that the family is a model of Christian sacrifice for the faithful. Another unusual aspect of the beatification was that the young mother in the Ulma Family was pregnant with the youngest child at the time of her murder, which the Vatican interpreted as the child being born and then “baptized by blood.” It is nonetheless a powerful statement of the humanity of unborn children. Poland’s President and Prime Minister were in attendance of today’s beatification.

Foreign Digest: Zimbabwe, Bosnia, Italy and China

Zimbabwe: The presidential elections in Zimbabwe last week were won by the incumbent president, whose ruling far-left party has ruled the southern African State since independence in 1980. International observers and the leading opposition party report irregularities in the close vote, as is usual in Zimbabwe, which remains unfree and unrepresentative. Bosnia: The European Court for Human Rights ruled that elections in Bosnia-Herzegovina are not democratic because of the “privileged” results for certain ethnic groups. Bosnia is geographically and politically split between Croat (Slavic and Roman Catholic) and Bosniak (Muslim) and Serbian (Slavic and Eastern Orthodox) communities since the civil war ended in 1995 following the breakup of the former Yugoslavia in 1991. Serbia, the dominant Republic within Yugoslavia, was led at the time by a Communist tyrant who fomented extreme Serbian nationalism, which led to bloody wars and atrocities for years and which has created enduring tensions. Italy and China: The Italian Government will not renew the Belt and Road Initiative with Communist China. Under a left-right populist coalition government, Italy had been the only major industrial or Western power to sign onto the infrastructure program dubbed the “New Silk Road” that increases Chinese influence and opportunities for espionage and undermining security. But the deal was suspended under the national unity government of Mario Draghi because of security concerns and pressure from allies. The current right-wing government also cites an imbalance of benefits for China.

Nigerien Coup Update: The Junta Promises Transition as ECOWAS Threatens Force

The junta that seized power in Niger in late July has now promised a transition to cilian rule and elections within three years. It overthrew the elected President, whom it is holding under difficult circumstances, along with his family and other government officials. The junta has threatened to prosecute him and to seek the death penalty for treason, as it was dissatisfied with Niger’s fight against an Islamist terrorist insurgency. Although the promise of a democratic transition was sought by the international community, including the United States, which has a small force of troops there to aid Niger against the terrorists, it may not be enough to satisfy the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which has prepared a force and a plan to remove the junta and restore the elected government. Former colonial power France also demands the restoration to power of the elected government and has not withdrawn its troops because it does not recognize the junta as the legitimate government. The junta claims it will not seek help from Kremlin-associated Russian mercenaries with terrible human rights records, as the military coup leaders who took over neighboring Mali and Burkina Faso have done, but the West fears a loss of its last bastion of influence in the Sahel, a strategic battlefield in the War on Terrorism, and a corresponding gain for Russia. The U.S., like the African Union, prefers a diplomatic solution over force. ECOWAS’ standby force may be inadequate, even without any support from Mali and Burkina Faso. They may believe that deterrence of military coups that plague the region, the fight against Islamist insurgents, namely al-Qaeda and its offshoot, the Islamic State, as well as their relations with the West versus Russia are worth the fight to save representative government in Niger.

Foreign Digest: Russia, Nicaragua and Spain

Russia: The Russian Federation’s tyrannical regime of ex-Soviet intelligence officer, Vladimir Putin, has closed the Sakharov Foundation, one of the last centers for the exchange of political ideas. Named for the nuclear scientist and Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov, the center had opened after the fall of the Soviet Union, which Putin wishes to restore. Putin, who has been in power for 23 years, does not permit dissent against him and increasingly does not tolerate independent organizations. Nicaragua: The tyrant of Nicaragua, Daniel Ortega, continues not only to eliminate all civic organizations, including religious ones, the Red Cross, and even organizations for collectors and the like, but also academic ones, recently taking over a well-regarded Catholic university that was a bastion for freedom of thought. Ortega, now in his presidential fourth term after arresting all opponents ahead of the last election, had been the dictator under the Marxist Sandinista regime that took over Nicaragua in 1979 and ruled until losing a free and fair election it tolerated in 1991. Public protests were put down with violence and over a hundred Nicaraguan supporters of freedom, including some clergy, were forced into exile. Spain: The ruling Socialists managed to win the Spanish parliamentary elections, even though the conservatives won the most votes and seats, after a by-election assured the center-left party of having enough seats to form a coalition majority government with regional parties who won a significant number of seats. Instead of winning an expected majority for their bloc of parties, the conservatives were dragged down by their election alliance with a far-right party that lost seats. Spain is an ally of the United States as a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

The United Nations Condemns the Taliban Regime of Afghanistan for Gross Human Rights Abuses

The United Nations last week on the second anniversary of the Islamist Taliban militia’s seizure of power in Afghanistan has stated that the oppressive terrorist-sponsoring militia has not changed since the last time it ruled Afghanistan. In addition to violating the freedom of expression and assembly, the UN enumerated a list of abuses by the Taliban: violent and discriminatory oppression, forced marriages—even for children, economic and sexual exploitation, the sale of organs and children, forced child labor and human trafficking. I have also posted how the Taliban, who are intertwined with terrorists, have killed many who had worked for the elected Afghan Government. After the United States and its coalition allies withdrew, the Taliban seized power in 2021 after having been removed in 2002 by an international coalition led by the U.S. because the militia had hosted the al-Qaeda terrorists responsible for the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks, the deadliest in history. No State has reocognized the Taliban as the legitimate government of Afghanistan.

Another Conservative Think Tank Criticizes the Disastrous Trump-Biden Afghan Withdrawal

In my post about Afghanistan last month, Conservative Think Tank Calls for American Support of the Anti-Taliban Afghan Resistance, https://williamcinfici.blogspot.com/2023/07/conservative-think-tank-calls-for.html, I focused on the call by the Hudson Institute for support of the National Resistance Front, the main Afghan resistance movement against the Islamist Taliban militia that seized power in Afghanistan again in 2020. The Taliban had been overthrown in 2002 by an international coalition led by the United States, and which included the recognized Afghan Government, which had retained de facto control of northeast Afghanistan, where their successors, the National Resistance Front, are also based. The Taliban were overthrown after hosting the Islamist al-Qaeda terrorists responsible for the September 11, 2011 Terrorist Attacks on America that killed a record nearly 3,000 people. But I write to note also that as I did and as the Center for the Foundation for Democracy and other conservatives also have, the Hudson Institute criticized the disastrous Trump-Biden withdrawal for the return of power of the Taliban. They observed that Donald Trump’s negotiations with the Taliban that legitimized the Islamist militia and undermined the elected coalition Afghan Government the U.S. had been supporting, who were excluded from negotiations. Trump’s inartful deal with the Taliban forced an American withdrawal, in exchange for a promise from the terrorist sponsors intertwined with al-Qaeda and affiliated terrorists not to host al-Qaeda again. After taking power, the Taliban hosted al-Qaeda’s leader in Kabul. Trump’s deal barred the Americans from combat against the Taliban and enabled his presidential successor, Joe Biden, who, like Trump, opposed the continued non-combat training mission of a few thousand U.S. troops in Afghanistan, to have an excuse to give up, instead of rejecting Trump’s deal and implementing a policy to defeat the Taliban. Furthermore, Biden had no plan to address the rapid takeover of Afghanistan, which happened despite some American support for the Afghan Government and some valiant efforts by some Afghan forces. His plan to continue to strike terrorists without having a base in Afghanistan did allow the U.S. to kill al-Qaeda’s leader through a missile strike, but only after he had been able to communicate better with his forces and the Taliban for months because of his presence in Afghanistan, and without being able to exploit intelligence from his hideout, as in previous raids, such as the one that killed al-Qaeda’s previous leader. Meanwhile, the Taliban oppress religious and ethnic minorities, do not tolerate basic freedoms, especially for women, and have killed many Afghans who had worked for the Afghan Government.

Nigerien Coup Update

The African Union supports the restoration to power of the elected government of Niger after the military coup two weeks ago I have been posting about and also supports the efforts of the West African Economic Community of States to restore it through diplomatic pressure, but by force, if necessary. ECOWAS has created a stand-by force from several West African States, but of only 5,000 troops. After snubbing ECOWAS and other international envoys and threatening to kill the deposed Nigerien President it is holding, the military junta is finally expressing a willingness for a diplomatic solution. Such a solution would require a transition to civilian power and elections. As I have posted, Niger is the last State in the Sahel battling Islamist terrorists that is backed by Western States. The United States and France have a combined force of over 2,500 troops in Niger and other Western powers have provided aid. But Like Mali and Burkina Faso, after their elected governments were overthrown in military coups, Niger’s junta intends to turn toward Kremlin-associated Russian mercenaries infamous for atrocities, instead of the West, against the jihadists. Those two States in the Sahel back Niger’s junta against ECOWAS, while Guinea, whose leader also took power by coup, is diplomatically supportive of Niger’s junta. The opposition from these West African States undermine ECOWAS’s efforts. Neighboring Algeria opposes the coup, but also opposes an armed intervention. With the split among Africans and the junta’s threat to the elected President, with the conditions for him and his family worsening, and as the sanctions, travel restrictions and power cutoffs from ECOWAS are causing humanitarian problems for Niger, a diplomatic solution appears urgent and more likely to be successful than a military one.

Foreign Digest, Caucasus Region: Nagorno-Karabakh and Georgia

Nagorno-Karabakh: There have recently been renewed tensions over the region of Nagorno-Karabakh within Azerbaijan that is controlled by ethnic Armenians, who share close ties with nearby Armenia. The Christian Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh and their ally, Armenia, have been fighting off and on with Muslim Azerbaijan since the two former Soviet Republics became independent from the Soviet Union in 1991. A land corridor with Armenia was cut off by the Azeris in fighting three years ago, but now Azerbaijan has even been cutting off supplies from Armenia to the Armenian enclave. The peace deal reached at the time, in which Armenia gave up much of the territory beyond Nagorno-Karabakh it had won in previous fighting, was guaranteed by Russian troops, who have not defended the ethnic Armenians from the Azeris’ supply cutoff. Georgia: The United Staes and five allies on the United Nations Security Council demanded in a joint statement last week that the Russian Federation return control of Georgian territory on the 15th anniversary of its seizure of two breakaway territories of the former Soviet Republic of Georgia in 2008. The Russians established independent puppet states that are hardly recognized internationally, and have kept Russian troops there ever since. The U.S. and its allies note how the Russian invasion of the Caucasus State to its south presaged its aggression against the former Soviet Republic of Ukraine in 2014, in violation of both States’ sovereignty and territorial integrity, which Russia recognized, and as required by the U.N. Charter. The Americans and their allies also note how the Russians have erected barbed wire and other obstacles, unlawfully abducted Georgians, discriminated against ethnic Georgians and target Georgian cultural heritage for damage. The Russians, led by former Soviet intelligence officer, Vladimir Putin, a tyrant who dreams of restoring the Soviet Union, have encroached on Georgian territory by pushing the border forward repeatedly in various locations, adding the territory to their puppet states. The U.S. and its allies call for a peaceful resolution between Russia and Georgia.

Nigerien Coup Update: Russian Machinations in the War on Terrorism Front

I had posted a week ago about the coup in Niger, in which a military junta has seized power from the elected government. Niger, like two other States in the Sahel, Mali and Burkina Faso, has been battling Islamist terrorists, namely, al-Qaeda and its offshoot, the Islamic State, as the region has become a major front in the War on Terrorism. In all three, there were coups by military officers claiming dissatisfaction with their government’s effectiveness against the jihadist insurgencies. Mali and Burkina Faso turned to Kremlin-backed Russian mercenaries, instead of the Western-led support they had been receiving. The mercenaries, who are also present in Libya, the Central African Republic, Syria and Ukraine, commit human rights violations. Although the Russian Federation is calling for a restoration of the elected President, it opposes the use of force by foreigners to restore the elected government. The Nigerien President, who is being held captive by the military junta that seized power last week, has called on the United States and others to help restore him to power, lest the entire Sahel region fall into the hands of Russia, as the coup leaders are expected to spurn U.S. and Western aid and turn to the Russian mercenaries. The U.S. and the European Union oppose the coup and are threatening to cut off aid to Niger. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), of which Niger is a member, has already imposed sanctions and called for the restoration of the elected government of Niger and is threatening to use force to oust the junta. ECOWAS has intervened several times in West Africa after coups or civil wars. Former colonial power France opposes the coup, but politically cannot lead any force that would be labeled by coup supporters as imperialist. The U.S. and the European Union do not intend to act militarily, but prefer ECOWAS to take the lead.