War with Syria

Barack Obama Refers to Armed Forces of the United States as MY Military

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The official said that every major player on the National Security Council - including the commander-in-chief - was in accord last night on the need for military action, and that the president's decision to seek a congressional debate and vote was a surprise to most if not all of them.However, the aide insisted the request for Congress to vote did not supplant the president's earlier decision to use force in Syria, only delayed its implementation.

"That's going to happen, anyway," the source told me, adding that that was why the president, in his rose Garden remarks, was careful to establish that he believes he has the authority to launch such strikes even without congressional authorization.

Other senior administration officials, outside of the Department of State, would not confirm as much, telling reporters only that the door had been left open for the president to proceed without congressional authorization.

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Well, you can't be entirely surprised, can you? Obama did say on Saturday that he doesn't think he needs congressional authorization, which sets him up as Mr. Reasonable for asking anyway, but allows him to come back later and just do whatever he wants. He never has answered the question of where he gets the authority to attack another country without congressional approval. I doubt he will, because there is no answer.

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The full text of the message reads as follows:

"This is a message written by your brothers in the Syrian Army, who have been fighting al-Qaida for the last 3 years. We understand your patriotism and love for your country so please understand our love for ours. Obama is a traitor who wants to put your lives in danger to rescue al- Qaida insurgents.

Marines, please take a look at what your comrades think about Obama's alliance with al-Qaida against Syria. Your officer in charge probably has no qualms about sending you to die against soldiers just like you, fighting a vile common enemy. The Syrian army should be your ally not your enemy.

Refuse your orders and concentrate on the real reason every soldier joins their military, to defend their homeland. You're more than welcome to fight alongside our army rather than against it.

Your brothers, the Syrian army soldiers. A message delivered by the SEA"

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The Russian government has endorsed restructuring of the terms of the Russian loan to Cyprus, Deputy Finance Minister Sergei Storchak told reporters Friday.

"The restructuring was endorsed at the last meeting of the Cabinet," he said

Cyprus is to repay a EUR 2.5bn loan to Russia in eight semiannual installments starting in 2016, Deputy Finance Minister Sergey Storchak told reporters today, citing a revision of repayment terms approved at the latest cabinet meeting. The interest rate was lowered to 2.5% from 4.5%.

Russia extended the loan in 2011 for 4.5 years.

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Cyprus Refuses To Allow Strikes From Its Territory against Syria (via Bloomberg)

Cyprus assured its territory won't be used to launch military strikes against Syria, Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides said, according to a transcript of his comments posted on govt's press-office website

Kasoulides commented that "Cyprus wants to live up to its responsibility as a shelter if needed for nationals of friendly countries who evacuate from the middle east"

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The Government of Cyprus has repeatedly expressed its grave concern about the use of chemical weapons against the friendly people of Syria, including innocent civilians and even against women and children. Our reaction becomes even stronger when this happens in such proximity to our country. The loss of 1429 lives, including 426 children in the last attack in Damascus, constitutes a crime against humanity. It is unreservedly condemned. Such a heinous act, cannot be left without consequences. Undoubtedly, use of chemical weapons has occurred. The designation of the responsible side does not fall under the mandate of the UN fact-finding mission. Nonetheless, the Syrian regime is accountable for the fact that it is producing, stockpiling, and is in a position to mixture chemical weapons, in violation of customary international and humanitarian law, including the UN Convention on Chemical Weapons. If the Syrian regime had proceeded to destroy such weapons, in the presence of observers of the relevant international organizations, it would not have the onus to prove that is not responsible of their recent massive use. Whatever happens, the Geneva II Process must be safeguarded, in order to seek a political solution to the wider problem. Cyprus, as a country of stability, peace and security in the region, stands ready to live up to its responsibility as a shelter, in case needed, in order to evacuate nationals of friendly countries from the Middle East. Cyprus would like to safeguard this capacity; to that end, 0we have been assured that the territory of Cyprus will not be used for military strikes.

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Cyprus does not want to accept the strings attached to the European offer. The Cypriotic alternative is called Russia. Last December, Moscow already gave Nicosia a bilateral loan of ?3bn. Eager, since the era of Peter the Great, to acquire a strategic foothold in the Eastern Mediterranean, Russia is now offering even more. And with President Demetris Christofias of Cyprus happy to accommodate his friend Vladimir Putin, there is no doubt that Nicosia will turn to Moscow rather than to Brussels.

Christofias is a Communist - he is, in fact, the only Communist leader in the European Union - and, under the EU's rotating chairmanship, he will be chairing the EU meetings from July 1st until the end of the year.

As pointed out earlier in this Gatestone column, if Russia steps in, the strategic situation in the entire Eastern Mediterranean could change. Russia stands to gain most out of the eurozone crisis. Cyprus is a prey which it has long been eying. If Moscow loses Syria as its ally, it needs Cyprus as a substitute. Bailing out Nicosia is a bargain price to acquire a permanent naval base for the Russian fleet in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Cyprus is said to be so high on Russia's priority list that President Putin himself is currently dealing with the ?4bn loan request from Nicosia. The interest charged by the Russians is 4.5%, which is far better than Cyprus can get anywhere else. The financial risk for the Russians is limited. There is every chance that Cyprus will be able to repay their bilateral loans fairly soon. Nicosia hopes to start exploiting the huge gas reserves off the Cypriotic coast in the coming decade. With Russian help, it might even be able to exploit these gas fields within the next five years.

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During the 2000s, Cyprus and its low ten percent corporate tax rate attracted Russian capital and Russian oligarchs. The flux of cash from Russia to Cyprus and from Cyprus to Russia (see table below) is also heavily sustained by the 1998 bilateral tax treaty, which allows Russians to pay a low five percent rate on dividends.[15] While 30 percent of Russia's foreign direct investment (FDI) was in Cyprus from 2008-2011, Cypriot companies have accounted for 23 percent of FDI in Russia, making Cyprus one of the most important foreign investors for Moscow. Furthermore, at the end of the first trimester of 2013, Russian money accounted for up to ?20 billion of the ?35 billion of foreign money in Cypriot banks.[16] The Russian money then invested in Cyprus is in turn invested back into Russia, thus taking advantage of the 2010 bilateral agreement which abolished double taxation and bypassing Russian domestic taxation on investments. For Russian oligarchs, the island has served as the backdoor to Europe, since anyone spending a minimum of ?300,000 on property is granted permanent residency. This in turn allows one to move freely in the EU. Cyprus has thus become a real fiscal heaven for wealthy Russian businessmen.

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The proposed AUMF focuses on Syrian WMD but is otherwise very broad. It authorizes the President to use any element of the U.S. Armed Forces and any method of force. It does not contain specific limits on targets - either in terms of the identity of the targets (e.g. the Syrian government, Syrian rebels, Hezbollah, Iran) or the geography of the targets. Its main limit comes on the purposes for which force can be used. Four points are worth making about these purposes. First, the proposed AUMF authorizes the President to use force "in connection with" the use of WMD in the Syrian civil war. (It does not limit the President's use force to the territory of Syria, but rather says that the use of force must have a connection to the use of WMD in the Syrian conflict. Activities outside Syria can and certainly do have a connection to the use of WMD in the Syrian civil war.). Second, the use of force must be designed to "prevent or deter the use or proliferation" of WMDs "within, to or from Syria" or (broader yet) to "protect the United States and its allies and partners against the threat posed by such weapons." Third, the proposed AUMF gives the President final interpretive authority to determine when these criteria are satisfied ("as he determines to be necessary and appropriate"). Fourth, the proposed AUMF contemplates no procedural restrictions on the President's powers (such as a time limit).

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