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NSA 'routinely' shares Americans' data with Israel - Snowden leak
Edited time: September 11, 2013 16:13
Reuters/Kevin Lamarque
Russia’s ‘carrier-killer’ Moskva enters Mediterranean
Edited time: September 11, 2013 18:11
Russia’s ‘carrier-killer’ Moskva enters Mediterranean
Edited time: September 11, 2013 18:11
Missile cruiser "Moskva" (RIA Novosti/Vitaliy Ankov)
Russia’s Moskva missile cruiser, dubbed a “carrier-killer” by NATO, has passed through the Straits of Gibraltar and is now heading toward the eastern Mediterranean to assume command of the Russian naval force there.
The Russian Navy said in a statement that the Moskva cruiser
passed through the Straits of Gibraltar on September 10.
Interfax news agency added that the Moskva cruiser, “commanded
by Sergey Tronev, Captain 1st Rank of the Guards… has enough room
for maneuver now.”
“The Black Sea flagship entered the Russian Navy's area of
responsibility in the Mediterranean at 11:00 pm Moscow time
yesterday," the agency reported a military source as saying.
The missile-carrying cruiser is expected to join its final
destination in eastern Mediterranean on September 15 or 16.
Upon arrival, the command of the Russian Navy unit in the
Mediterranean, currently stationed onboard the Admiral Panteleyev
anti-submarine ship, will be relocated to the Moskva.
"The armaments and technical equipment of the missile cruiser
are in working condition. The crew is ready to perform combat
missions,” the source said.
Missile cruiser "Moskva" belonging to Russia's Black Sea Fleet firing anti-aircraft missiles during joint drills with other fleets. (RIA Novosti/Vitaliy Ankov)
The missile cruiser, initially known to Western naval intelligence as “Slava” (Glory), was launched in 1979 and entered service in 1983. It was later renamed the “Moskva” in 1995. Designed to be carrier-killers, the cruisers of Class 1164 are equipped with 16 anti-ship launchers P-1000 Vulkan, or Volcano (SS-N-12 Sandbox anti-ship missiles, according to NATO classification).
‘Moskva’ weaponry
-16x SS-N-12 Sandbox anti-ship missiles
- 8x8 (64) S-300PMU Favorit (SA-N-6 Grumble) long-range surface-to-air missiles
-2x20 (40) OSA-MA (SA-N-4 Gecko) SR SAM
-1x twin AK-130 130mm/L70 dual-purpose guns
-6xAK-630 close-in weapons systems
-2x RBU-6000 anti-submarine mortars
-10x (2 quin) 533mm torpedo tubes
Armor: Splinter plating
Aircraft carried: 1 Ka-25 or Ka-27 helicopter
Another two vessels, the landing ship Nikolay Filchenkov and the
guard ship Smetlivy, will join the Russian naval unit later. They
will be pass through the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits by
September 12-14 and will then head to the eastern Mediterranean.
Russia’s Defense Ministry has said the maneuvers are part of the
“stage-by-stage rotation of warships and support ships of the
standing naval force in the Mediterranean.”
The recent deployments are aimed at “complex monitoring” of the situation
around Syria, military sources told Interfax earlier.
Russia’s standing naval force in the Mediterranean now involves
landing craft carriers “Aleksandr Shabalin,” “Admiral Nevelskoy,”
“Peresvet,” “Novocherkassk” and “Minsk” of Russia’s Black and
Baltic Sea Fleets, as well as escort vessel “Neustrashimy,” and
the anti-submarine ship “Admiral Panteleyev.”
"Admiral Panteleyev" anti-submarine ship returning to Vladivostok from Japanese port Hakodate (Hokkaido island). (RIA Novosti/Vitaliy Ankov)
Russian naval maneuvers in the Mediterranean come amid growing
tension in the region, which sparked speculation that Russia was
boosting its naval presence ahead of a possible US strike against
Syria.
Previously, Russia’s defense officials cautioned against making
connections between the relocation of warships and the Syrian
crisis, saying the maneuvers do not depend on the situation and
“will continue after it.”
Landing craft carrier "Admiral Nevelskoy". (RIA Novosti/Ildus Gilyazutdinov)
Obama orders US military to ‘maintain posture’ on Syria
Edited time: September 11, 2013 04:14
Russia’s ‘carrier-killer’ Moskva enters Mediterranean
Russia’s Moskva missile cruiser, dubbed a “carrier-killer” by NATO, has passed through the Straits of Gibraltar and is now heading toward the eastern Mediterranean to assume command of the Russian naval force there.
The Russian Navy said in a statement that the Moskva cruiser
passed through the Straits of Gibraltar on September 10.
Interfax news agency added that the Moskva cruiser, “commanded
by Sergey Tronev, Captain 1st Rank of the Guards… has enough room
for maneuver now.”
“The Black Sea flagship entered the Russian Navy's area of
responsibility in the Mediterranean at 11:00 pm Moscow time
yesterday," the agency reported a military source as saying.
The missile-carrying cruiser is expected to join its final
destination in eastern Mediterranean on September 15 or 16.
Upon arrival, the command of the Russian Navy unit in the
Mediterranean, currently stationed onboard the Admiral Panteleyev
anti-submarine ship, will be relocated to the Moskva.
"The armaments and technical equipment of the missile cruiser
are in working condition. The crew is ready to perform combat
missions,” the source said.
Missile cruiser "Moskva" belonging to Russia's Black Sea Fleet firing anti-aircraft missiles during joint drills with other fleets. (RIA Novosti/Vitaliy Ankov)
The missile cruiser, initially known to Western naval intelligence as “Slava” (Glory), was launched in 1979 and entered service in 1983. It was later renamed the “Moskva” in 1995. Designed to be carrier-killers, the cruisers of Class 1164 are equipped with 16 anti-ship launchers P-1000 Vulkan, or Volcano (SS-N-12 Sandbox anti-ship missiles, according to NATO classification).
‘Moskva’ weaponry
-16x SS-N-12 Sandbox anti-ship missiles
- 8x8 (64) S-300PMU Favorit (SA-N-6 Grumble) long-range surface-to-air missiles
-2x20 (40) OSA-MA (SA-N-4 Gecko) SR SAM
-1x twin AK-130 130mm/L70 dual-purpose guns
-6xAK-630 close-in weapons systems
-2x RBU-6000 anti-submarine mortars
-10x (2 quin) 533mm torpedo tubes
Armor: Splinter plating
Aircraft carried: 1 Ka-25 or Ka-27 helicopter
Another two vessels, the landing ship Nikolay Filchenkov and the
guard ship Smetlivy, will join the Russian naval unit later. They
will be pass through the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits by
September 12-14 and will then head to the eastern Mediterranean.
Russia’s Defense Ministry has said the maneuvers are part of the
“stage-by-stage rotation of warships and support ships of the
standing naval force in the Mediterranean.”
The recent deployments are aimed at “complex monitoring” of the situation
around Syria, military sources told Interfax earlier.
Russia’s standing naval force in the Mediterranean now involves
landing craft carriers “Aleksandr Shabalin,” “Admiral Nevelskoy,”
“Peresvet,” “Novocherkassk” and “Minsk” of Russia’s Black and
Baltic Sea Fleets, as well as escort vessel “Neustrashimy,” and
the anti-submarine ship “Admiral Panteleyev.”
"Admiral Panteleyev" anti-submarine ship returning to Vladivostok from Japanese port Hakodate (Hokkaido island). (RIA Novosti/Vitaliy Ankov)
Russian naval maneuvers in the Mediterranean come amid growing
tension in the region, which sparked speculation that Russia was
boosting its naval presence ahead of a possible US strike against
Syria.
Previously, Russia’s defense officials cautioned against making
connections between the relocation of warships and the Syrian
crisis, saying the maneuvers do not depend on the situation and
“will continue after it.”
Landing craft carrier "Admiral Nevelskoy". (RIA Novosti/Ildus Gilyazutdinov)
US President Barack Obama (AFP Photo / Evan Vucci)
Trends
Syria unrestTags
Arms, Intelligence, Opposition, Politics, Security, Syria, Terrorism, UN, USA, WarAddressing the nation, the US president has asked Congress to postpone a vote on military action in Syria as diplomacy is pursued to put chemical weapons beyond the regime's reach, but called on the military to maintain pressure on the Syrian government.
In his speech the US president has reiterated that it is in the national security interests of the United States to respond to the Assad government’s alleged use of chemical weapons with a limited military action.
However, since over the last few days there have been a number of
“encouraging signs” that the crisis could be resolved
politically – “in part because of the credible threat of US
military action” – the US President has asked the leaders of
Congress to “postpone a vote to authorize the use of force
while we pursue this diplomatic path.”
US President Barack Obama (AFP Photo / Evan Vucci)
Obama spoke of the Russian proposal to put Syria’s chemical weapons under international control as one of the reasons he was delaying a “limited strike” on Syria.
“It’s too early to tell whether this offer will succeed, and any agreement must verify that the Assad regime keeps its commitments, but this initiative has the potential to remove the threat of chemical weapons without the use of force, particularly because Russia is one of Assad’s strongest allies,” Obama said.
Obama has pledged to continue discussions on the Syrian issue with President Vladimir Putin, while Secretary of State John Kerry will meet his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Geneva on Thursday.
France and the United Kingdom, two of the US’s closest allies,
the President said, will also work together in consultation with
Russia and China to put forward a resolution at the UN Security
Council.
“We’ll also give UN inspectors the opportunity to report their findings about what happened on August 21st,” Obama added.
However, at the beginning of his speech the President made it clear that the US has no doubts that the Syrian government was responsible for the deadly chemical attack.
“No one disputes that chemical weapons were used in Syria… Moreover, we know the Assad regime was responsible,” he said, reiterating vague details of the attack outlined in the excerpts of the US intelligence report declassified earlier this month.
'Pursuing the diplomatic path'
Russia proposed placing Syria’s chemical weapons under international monitoring and eventually destroying them if all parties agree to denounce military action. China and Iran have endorsed the idea, which has appeared to gain traction since it was first proposed Monday while other members of the UN Security Council have expressed doubt over how the chemical weapons could be safely moved out of an active war zone.
Moscow is planning to propose a UN draft resolution supporting its initiative. However, a closed door meeting of the UN Security Council initially asked for by Russia on Tuesday was postponed at Russia’s request.
Meanwhile, France was reportedly ready to table its own draft that would allow military action against Syria if the Assad government is considered uncooperative.
“It was extremely well played by the Russians, but we didn’t want someone else to go to the UN with a resolution that was weak,” a French diplomatic source told Reuters.
An initial French draft UN Security Council resolution demanded
that Syria make a complete declaration of its chemical weapons
program within 15 days and immediately open all related sites to
UN inspectors or otherwise face “further necessary measures”
under Chapter VII of the UN Charter.
In this image made available by the Syrian News Agency (SANA) on March 19, 2013, medics and other masked people attend to a man at a hospital in Khan al-Assal in the northern Aleppo province, as Syria's government accused rebel forces of using chemical weapons for the first time (AFP Photo)
US lawmakers admitted their reluctance but pledged to examine the Russian idea closely. Obama asked Congress to delay voting on whether to authorize a military strike in response to the proposal.
Obama’s comments follow Syria’s Foreign Minister Walid Muallem’s admission that Syria would be open to turning over their chemical weapons to international control. Then, on Tuesday, Syria announced it would be willing to sign the Chemical Weapons Convention, revealing all details of the chemical program.
“We will open our storage sites, and cease production,” Muallem told Lebanon’s al-Maydeen TV. “We are ready to open these facilities to Russia, other countries and the United Nations. We intend to give up chemical weapons altogether.”
US Secretary of State John Kerry was joined at the Capitol building earlier in the day by Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Martin Dempsey. The trio testified before the House Armed Services Committee and questioned on the Russian proposal, which Kerry said he regarded with a hesitant optimism while asking Congress to approve the military strike no matter what.
“But make no mistake about why this is now even on the table,” he said. “They say nothing focuses the mind like the prospect of a hanging.”
Hagel informed the committee that the earliest a strike against Syria could take place at this time is now in mid-October.
The NSA regularly shares raw US intelligence data with Israel without even removing information about American citizens, according to the latest revelation published by the Guardian. The report is based on a document leaked by Edward Snowden.
On Tuesday, September 11, the Guardian published a previously undisclosed document which revealed top-secret policies in place since 2009 that are used to share personal phone and Internet data pertaining to United States citizens with American ally Israel.
The document, a five-page memorandum authorized by the National Security Agency near the beginning of US President Barack Obama’s first administration, outlines a deal between the NSA and Israel’s SIGINT National Unit, or ISNU.
“This agreement,” the memo begins, “prescribes procedures and responsibilities for ensuring” privacy safeguards are implemented to protect the Fourth Amendment rights of US citizens with regards to the direct sharing of raw intelligence collected by the NSA with its Israeli counterpart.
That data, the document later explains, includes raw traffic picked up by the American spy office such as “unevaluated and unminimized transcripts, gists, facsimiles, telex, voice and Digital Network Intelligence (DNI) metadata and content” which is never necessarily scrutinized by US officials before sent to Israeli agents.
“Seems the only info actually being ‘minimized’ is the info #NSA shares with the American public,” American Civil Liberties Union Deputy Legal Director Jameel Jaffer tweeted following publication of the Guardian piece. “NSA is really good at minimizing that.”
But while the contents of emails and phone calls involving most US persons are fair game to be collected by Israeli intelligence, a select group of Americans are sparred from international surveillance: elected officials. The memo mandates that the Israelis must "destroy upon recognition" any communication "that is either to or from an official of the US government.” That pool of exempt persons is defined as "officials of the executive branch (including the White House, cabinet departments, and independent agencies), the US House of Representatives and Senate (member and staff) and the US federal court system (including, but not limited to, the Supreme Court)."
The Guardian notes, however, that other leaked documents uncovered as of late indicate that the US intelligence community may have reservations nonetheless with sharing info with even an ally as tried and true as Israel.
"On the one hand, the Israelis are extraordinarily good Sigint partners for us, but on the other, they target us to learn our positions on Middle East problems," a senior NSA official says in a 2008 NSA document seen by the Guardian but not published in Wednesday’s piece. "A NIE [National Intelligence Estimate] ranked them as the third most aggressive intelligence service against the US."
"One of NSA's biggest threats is actually from friendly intelligence services, like Israel. There are parameters on what NSA shares with them, but the exchange is so robust, we sometimes share more than we intended,” the Guardian quotes from the ’08 document.
According to Guardian journalists Glenn Greenwald, Laura Poitras and Ewen MacAskill, a NSA spokesperson pressed for comment wouldn’t deny the validity of the leaked document’s contents, but assured the British newspaper that "Any US person information that is acquired as a result of NSA's surveillance activities is handled under procedures that are designed to protect privacy rights.”
The latest leak comes on the 12-year anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks that many high-ranking US officials have used to justify the surveillance measures enacted in the decade-plus since. It also marks just more than three months since the Guardian first began published leaked NSA documents attributed to Snowden, a 30-year-old former intelligence contractor who has since relocated to Russia where he was granted asylum while avoiding espionage charges in the US.
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