THE TRUMPET WEEKLY THE TRUMPET WEEKLY

M AY 9, 2 0 1 4
Will India destabilize Afghanistan? 3
EU buying ex-Soviet states 4
Ukrainian crisis draws Russia to China 7
Famine in Somalia 8
Did an impact knock the moon on its side? 11
L
i1uU.i. is concerned about Russias May , decision
to unilaterally suspend a deal under which Moscow
agreed to provide information to Vilnius about Russian
weaponry in the region of Kaliningrad.
Tis is of great concern, said Andrias Krivas, Lithu-
anias vice-minister of foreign aairs, in a May , interview
with theTrumpet.com. Tis unilateral decision by Russia
dismantles a condence and security arrangement in the
see CONCERN page 12
BY JEREMIAH JACQUES
Lithuanian Foreign Vice-Minister:
We View Military Activity in
Kaliningrad With Concern
Rancher Cliven Bundy
Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics (left)
and Lithuanian Foreign Minister Andrius Krivas
attend a meeting to discuss the crisis in Ukraine.
MAY 9, 2014
2
THE TRUMPET WEEKLY
MIDDLE EAST
U.S.: Extent of Israeli
Spying Shocking
TIMES OF ISRAEL | May 6
I
sv.iis .ccvissivi and widespread
espionage activity in the U.S. is
increasingly angering American gov-
ernment ocials and has crossed red
lines, Newsweek reported Tuesday.
Te report anonymously quotes se-
nior intelligence ocials and congres-
sional staers who have been privy to
information on Israeli spying activi-
ties. Staers called the extent of Israeli
espionage sobering and shocking,
far exceeding similar activities by any
other close U.S. allies.
Some of the spying was allegedly
industrial in nature, conducted by
Israeli companies or individuals. But
a signicant amount appeared to be
state-sanctioned reconnaissance gath-
ering, according to the report.
Teyre incredibly aggressive.
Teyre aggressive in all aspects of
their relationship with the United
States, [one ocial] said.
Rebels Begin
Evacuating Homs
TIMES OF ISRAEL | May 7
S
vvi. .c1ivis1s say hundreds
of rebels have started evacuating
their last bastions in the central city
of Homs under a cease-re deal struck
last week with government forces.
An activist who goes by the name
of Abu Yassin al-Homsi said up to
:,:oo ghters were expected to leave
the city Wednesday, handing it over to
President Bashar Assads forces.
Te ghters will be taken a few kilo-
meters north to the towns of Talbiseh
and al-Dar al-Kabira on the northern
edge of Homs province.
Te buses were accompanied by
Syrian Army ocers. Homs Gov. Talal
Barazi conrmed that the rebels have
started leaving Homs.
Te Britain-based Syrian Organiza-
tion for Human Rights said that the
road to the besieged villages of Nubul
and Zahra were opened by the rebels
at the same time the evacuation was
taking place.
Homs, in the central western plains
of Syria, was one of the rst cities to
rise up against his rule three years ago,
earning it the nickname of the capital
of the revolution. Afer waves of
anti-Assad protests by its residents, it
was the rst city largely taken over by
armed rebels as the uprising evolved
into outright civil war.
Ever since, Assads forces have been
engaged in grueling urban warfare
trying to wrest it back. For the past
months, rebels were isolated and
C
ommi1.viis 1u.1 view the rebel withdrawal from the
city of Homs as a sign of a soon-coming end to Syrias
civil war should think twice. Instead of looking to Homs,
people should direct their attention to the town of Maarat
al Numan in the countrys north. More specically, they
should direct their attention to the gaping crater that was
once a government checkpoint in the middle of the town.
According to Arutz Sheva, Syrian insurgents dug a
,oo-meter tunnel under the checkpoint over the course
of ,o days, and then proceeded to pack it with o tons of
explosives. When the enormous tunnel bomb was deto-
nated on May ,, four buildings and at least ,o troops were
obliterated immediately.
While tunnel bombs have been a problem in the past,
this gigantic explosion is a stark testimony to the fact
that the Syrian rebels are not defeated. Te civil war has
dragged on for three bloody years so far. Te resilient rebel
forces throughout that time have proved their ability to
ght back against Syrian President Bashar Assads forces.
Te vast mushroom cloud of dust and debris should
certainly be a telltale warning to Assad that the ght is
not over yet. Keep your eyes on the ghting in Syria. Even
as the battle for Homs looks like it is nished, the overall
bloody civil war has not yet run its full course. Both sides
will keep producing new ways to destroy one another. Te
terrorist rebels will exploit tunnel bombs, and Assad will
explore the use of chlorine bombs.
Both sides are still capable of inicting massive amounts
of damage on one another. Events such as the rebel with-
drawal from Homs may be a blow to the rebels, but it isnt
their demise. Similarly, the removal of Assads chemical
weapons doesnt sound any sort of a death knell.
As one avenue for inicting pain and suering is
closedsuch as the withdrawal from Homs or the removal
of chemical weaponsanother opportunity is opened. Such
is the conundrum of the civil war, as is explained in our
article, What Is Worse, Assad or His Chemical Weapons:
Syrian Rebels Detonate Colossal Tunnel Bomb
Callum Wood | May 9
MAY 9, 2014
3
THE TRUMPET WEEKLY
blockaded inside a string of Homs
neighborhoods centered around its
historic old quarters, battered by heavy
government airstrikes and artillery.
India Might Destabilize
Afghanistan
BBC | May 6
I
ui.s uicisio last week to pay for
arms and equipment from Russia
to boost the strength of the Afghan
National Army (..) could be a dra-
matic game changer in the regionas
well as a step fraught with escalation
in regional rivalries.
Pakistan is almost certain to look
critically at the deal and accuse India,
its rival, of trying to outank it.
For the last few years India has
tactfully declined to say yes to Afghan
President Hamid Karzais repeated
pleas for the Indian supply of heavy
weapons for the .., such as long
range artillery, tanks and aircraf.
Now that the Americans are leaving
by the end of this year, India seems to
have changed its tune.
So far the agreement with Russia
implies that India will pay for Russian
arms such as light artillery and mortars
to be delivered to Afghanistan. However
both countries say it could involve the
delivery of heavy weapons in the future.
According to Reuters, India is
expected to help Afghanistan restart
an old armaments factory near Kabul,
ret old Soviet-era weapons, and step
up training of Afghan ocers and
special forcessomething it has al-
ready been doing in small numbers.
Pakistan fears that any heavy weap-
ons arriving in Afghanistan could end
up in the hands of the Afghan and
Pakistani Taliban.
Is Iran Giving Chlorine
Bombs to Syria?
TELEGRAPH | May 6
W
is1iv sicUvi1v ocials are
investigating allegations that Iran
supplied Chinese-made bombs lled
with chlorine gas to the Syrian regime
afer satellite images emerged of a
Syrian supply ight at Tehrans main
airport.
Iran is understood to have ordered
:o,ooo chlorine canisters from China
that, according to reports, have been
loaded on to ights to Syria.
Western security ocials say the
Assad regime has established a regular
air freight route with Iran using Rus-
sian-built Ilyushin ,o Syrian military
cargo aircraf.
Each ight between Damascus
and Mehrabad International Airport
in Tehran can carry up to o tons of
equipment, and the weapons are be-
lieved to include short-range missiles,
automatic ries and ammunition.
Many of the ights, which are in
breach of UN sanctions imposed
against Iran, took place while Iranian
negotiators were taking part in talks in
Geneva over Irans nuclear program.
Lebanese Lawmakers
Fail to Elect President
FOX NEWS | May 7
L
in.isi i.wm.xivs have again
failed to elect a new president as
legislators aliated with a Hezbollah-
led alliance boycotted the third round
of voting.
Lebanese politicians are sharply
divided and have failed to agree on a
compromise candidate for the coun-
trys top post. Te disputes make it
increasingly unlikely they would be
able to elect a president before Presi-
dent Michel Suleimans term ends on
May :,.
A two-thirds quorum of the legisla-
tures ::8 members is required for an
electoral session.
Wednesdays vote could not be held
as dozens of lawmakers, many of them
allied with Hezbollah, did not show
up. Only ,, lawmakers attended the
session.
TW
I N B R I E F
n Fatah says yes to peaceHamas
says no
Upon the formation of a unity govern-
ment between the Palestine Liberation
Organization (vio) and Hamas, vio
I
v. wiii target American aircraf carriers in the Persian
Gulf should a war between the two countries ever break
out, the naval chief of Irans powerful Revolutionary Guard
warned Tuesday as the country completes work on a large-
scale mock-up of a U.S. carrier.
Te remarks by Adm. Ali Fadavi, who heads the
hard-line Guards naval forces, were a marked contrast
to moderate President Hassan Rouhanis recent outreach
policies toward the Westa reminder of the compet-
ing viewpoints that exist at the highest levels within the
Islamic Republic.
Iran is building a simple replica of the aircraf carrier
Uss Nimitz in a shipyard in the southern port of Bandar
Abbas in order to be used in future military exercises, an
Iranian newspaper conrmed last month.
Fadavi was quoted Tuesday by the semi-ocial Fars
news agency as saying the immense size of the U.S. carri-
ers makes them an easy target. He said contingency plans
to target American carriers are a priority for the Guards
naval forces.
Te Revolutionary Guards naval forces are separate
from the main Iranian Navy. Tey are primarily based in
and around the Gulf and include a number of missile boats
and fast-attack vessels.
Irans military leaders believe future wars will be air-
and sea-based. Tehran has sought to upgrade its missile
and air defense systems, as well as its naval forces in antici-
pation of such a possibility.
U.S. Ships Are a Target in Case of War
ABC NEWS | May 6
MAY 9, 2014
4
THE TRUMPET WEEKLY
EUROPE
President Mahmoud Abbas was quick
to sell its merits to the international
community. But as quickly as the me-
dia and Abbas charged o to propa-
gate the good news of the unity deal,
Hamas responded. At a press confer-
ence in Gaza City, Hamas deputy
leader Mussa Abu Marzuq declared,
We will not recognize the Zionist
enemy. Marzuq also denied Abbass
claim that the new unity government
would bring an end to Arab-Israeli
violence. Apparently Hamas didnt go
to the same reconciliation meeting
Fatahs negotiators did, because the
two factions reached diametrically
opposite conclusions. Despite these
dierences, the coverage of the unity
government seems to focus almost
solely on Abbass positive yet hollow
statements. In reality, the logic that
is being abandoned by much of the
Western media actually condemns
Abbas. Less than 8 hours afer Abbas
began selling his naive predictions,
Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal spoke
to crowds of Hamas supporters in
Ramallah. Our path is resistance and
jihad is our choice, he said. In the
West Bank and Gaza Strip, inside and
out, our choice is resistance and the
rie is our way. Tere is no history or
future without jihad and resistance.
n Iraq elections overshadowed by
al Qaeda attacks
Iraqs general elections, which began
on April ,o, were severely hampered
by violence perpetrated by al Qaeda
forces in the nation. Iraq has fallen
from the delicate democratic plat-
form America placed it on, and has
descended into secular inghting and
terrorism. If anyone thinks al Qaeda
is not back with full force, try driv-
ing to the polling booth. Te threat of
car bombs closed roads to all private
vehicles on the day of the election. It
was part of a massive security op-
eration by the Iraqi Army to stop
alQaeda from launching attacks and
threatening voters on the day of the
election. It didnt work. Iraq is expe-
riencing the worst violence it has seen
in six years. More than :,oo people
died in the rst two months of the
year. On the day before the elections,
:, people were murdered when two
bombs exploded in a market in al Saa-
diyah. Te day before that, ,o people
were killed in the town of Khanaqin.
Te week before was marred with
more violence, as ,: people were killed
at a Shiite rally in Baghdad. Tat
week leading up to the election saw
:oo people killed in al Qaeda attacks
across the nation. Al Qaeda is proving
itself very capable of avoiding detec-
tion and carrying out assaults across
the country. Te violence is testimony
to the inescapable fact that Iraq today
is probably less safe than it was at the
start of the U.S. intervention. Today,
al Qaeda is taking control, and it is
not interested in using democratic
processes to make its presence felt.
But the al Qaeda terrorists are not the
only power to be feared by Iraqis. Te
current Shiite government of Nouri
al Maliki has been accused of fueling
much of the violence as opposition
parties bring forth allegations that
Maliki is promoting Shia Islam while
isolating minorities. According to
Paul Salem, vice president for Policy
and Research at the Middle East
Institute, Unless Maliki is replaced
or drastically changes his policies,
these might be the last elections in a
nominally united Iraq.
EU Unlocks Extra Cash
for Moldova, Georgia
EU BUSINESS | May 6
T
ui EUvovi. Union on Tues-
day unlocked oo million euros to
help bolster ties with East European
friends, Georgia and Moldova, who
along with Ukraine hope to draw
closer to the West.
Te EUs executive said [the funds
are] earmarked to help state institu-
tions and business seize the benets
of trade with the EU [and to] and
protect the right of minorities.
Both former Soviet satellites are
set this summer to sign wide-ranging
trade and political association agree-
ments with the EU, as is Ukraine,
and have sizeable Russian-speaking
minorities.
Te EU had hoped to draw a total
six former Soviet satellites into its
Eastern Partnership program. But
Armenia, Azerbaijan and Belarus de-
cided to turn back towards Moscow.
Ukraines ousted leader Viktor
Yanukovych suddenly backed out of
the program in November, triggering
protests, which quickly brought him
down and led to the current crisis. But
Moldova and Georgia have stood rm.
Putins Bloggers Law
NEW YORK TIMES | May 6
R
Ussi. u.s taken another major
step toward restricting its once
freewheeling Internet, as President
Vladimir V. Putin quietly signed a
new law requiring popular online
voices to register with the government,
a measure that lawyers, Internet
pioneers and political activists said
Tuesday would give the government a
much wider ability to track who said
what online.
Mr. Putins action on Monday, just
weeks afer he disparaged the Internet
as a special ci. project, borrowed
a page from the restrictive Internet
playbooks of many governments
around the world that have been
steadily smothering online freedoms
they once tolerated.
Te idea that the Internet was at best
controlled anarchy and beyond any
one nations control is fading globally
amid determined attempts by more
and more governments to tame the
web. If innovations like Twitter were
hailed as recently as the Arab upris-
ings as the new public square, govern-
ments like those in China, Pakistan,
MAY 9, 2014
5
THE TRUMPET WEEKLY
U
xv.ii is only a few steps away from military
confrontation, the German foreign minister warned
on Tuesday, as his country formally advised its citizens to
leave the eastern regions.
Tis deeply pessimistic assessment from Frank-Walter
Steinmeier came as the airport serving Donetsk region
the most populous area of Ukrainecanceled all interna-
tional ights until further notice.
Te information board in the departures hall of Sergei
Prokoev Airport showed a string of canceled ights to
destinations including Moscow, Munich and Istanbul.
One domestic departure to Kiev was allowed to depart,
but this appeared to be the only service of the day. An
ocial at Borispol airport
in Kiev said that no further
ights were expected from
Donetsk on Tuesday.
Te red, blue and black
ag of the Donetsk Peoples
Republic, established by
pro-Russian activists in this region, now ies outside the
airports departure hall.
Te authorities gave no reason for the decision to sus-
pend all services. One possibility is that Ukraines armed
forces want to clear the airspace to help their military
operation against pro-Russian insurgents.
A small airport serving the neighboring region of Lu-
hansk has also been closed, but this happened some days
ago for commercial reasons unrelated to the crisis.
Mr. Steinmeier told four European newspapers that the
bloodshed in the port city of Odessa, which claimed at least
o lives on Friday, had been a turning point. Te bloody
pictures from Odessa have shown us that we are just a few
steps away from a military confrontation, he said.
Already, the situation had escalated in a way that a
short time ago we would not have considered possible,
added Mr. Steinmeier.
His ministry issued new travel advice for Ukraine, urg-
ing all German citizens to
leave the eastern regions
of Donetsk and Luhansk.
Checkpoints and roadblocks
were erected in these regions,
which are operated by ir-
regular armed forces, reads
the advice. In the light of recent developments, it must
be assumed that the media will run special risk of being
detained or arrested by separatist forces.
Germany has close economic ties with Ukraine and a
respected network of diplomatic contacts.
Ukraine Close to War, Says Germany
TELEGRAPH | May 6
Turkey, Iran and now Russia are mak-
ing it clear that they can deploy their
tanks on virtual squares, too.
Widely known as the bloggers law,
the new Russian measure species that
any site with more than ,,ooo visitors
daily will be considered a media outlet
akin to a newspaper and be responsi-
ble for the accuracy of the information
published.
Mr. Putin has already used the pli-
able Russian Parliament to pass laws
that scattered the opposition, hobbled
nongovernmental organizations and
shut down public protests. Now, rid-
ing a wave of popular support afer
hosting the Winter Olympics and
annexing Crimea, he has turned his
attention to regulating the Internet, as
well as burnishing his credentials as
the worldwide champion of conserva-
tive values.
Speaking in St. Petersburg in late
April, Mr. Putin voiced his suspicions
about the Internet, even while noting
that it had become a public market of
huge proportions.
Mr. Putin went on to say that
someone writing online whose opinion
aects thousands or even hundreds of
thousands of people should be consid-
ered a media outlet. He said he was not
talking about a ban, only acting the
way it is done all over the world.
Norway to Snub Tibet
to Please China
GUARDIAN | May 6
T
ui Novwici. government is
facing increasing pressure over its
decision to snub the Dalai Lama when
he arrives in the country on Wednes-
day, despite the fact that he has been
invited by the Nobel committee to
mark the :,th anniversary of his Nobel
peace prize.
When the exiled Tibetan spiritual
leader arrives in Norway on a three-
day visit, he will not meet any repre-
sentatives of the Norwegian conser-
vative-led coalition government.
Critics have accused the government
of cowardice in the face of the seem-
ing benets of trade with China.
On Monday, the prime minister,
Erna Solberg, defended her position,
arguing that it was more important to
keep the door open for dialogue with
China.
Audun Lysbakken, the leader of the
Socialist Lef party, said: We cant be
dictated to by China in the sense of
exchanging human rights for salmon.
I am strongly in favor of improving
relations with China, but this has to
be founded on mutual respect.
Scripture shows that Russias resurgence will cause Eu-
rope to unite in a way that this world cant even imagine.
It will help mold Europe into the seventh and nal resur-
rection of the biblically prophesied Holy Roman Empire.
Gerald Flurry, Trumpet, March 2014
A more dictatorial Russian government
is coming fast . Russian elections
have recently moved President Vladi-
mir Putin much closer to becoming a
dictator.
Gerald Flurry, January 2004
This Euro-Asian partnership is proph-
esied to lead to the destruction of the
United States and Britain!
Trumpet, August 2012
MAY 9, 2014
6
THE TRUMPET WEEKLY
Crisis of Legitimacy
GERMAN FOREIGN POLICY | May 5
T
ui Uvviciui1iu disinforma-
tion campaign being waged by the
leading German media has reached
a new climax with its reporting on
the murder of more than o people in
Odessa. In the Ukrainian metropolis
of a million inhabitants, the Trade
Union House caught rea catas-
trophe whose cause is still unknown.
Tis is how it was reported immediate-
ly following the re, on May :. Even
though supporters of the putschists in
Kiev could be seen hurling Molotov
cocktails at those barricaded inside
the Trade Union House on interna-
tional press agency photos, key Ger-
man media organs chose to publish
the Ukrainian intelligence services
falsied bulletins claiming that Mos-
cow was responsible for the crimes.
Tose murdered were among a group
of demonstrators calling for regional
autonomy. Tey had ed their attack-
ers and were chased into the Trade
Union House, blocked inside and lef
to a gruesome death by suocation.
Even though the context can long
since be reconstructed, the Tagess-
chau evening newscast still described
the scene in deliberately vague terms
: hours later. For example, on May
,, at :o::, the incident in Odessa was
described in the First German Televi-
sion Network (.vu): Te Trade Union
House caught re. Tis formulation
sounds like a technical defect, while
avoiding linking the incident to an
abundance of news material from
international agencies. Tat unidenti-
ed persons may have set the re is all
that was admitted, claiming ignorance
of the surrounding circumstances.
P
ovi Fv.cis called Friday for governments to redis-
tribute wealth and benets to the poor in a new spirit of
generosity to help curb the economy of exclusion that is
taking hold today.
Francis made the appeal during a speech to UN Sec-
retary General Ban Ki-moon and the heads of major UN
agencies who met in Rome this week.
Latin Americas rst pope has frequently lashed out
at the injustices of capitalism and the global economic
system. On Friday, Francis called for the United Nations to
promote a worldwide ethical mobilization of solidarity
with the poor.
He said a more equal form of economic progress can
be had through the legitimate redistribution of economic
benets by the state, as well as indispensable cooperation
between the private sector and civil society.
Francis urged the UN to promote development goals
that attack the root causes of poverty and hunger, protect
the environment and ensure dignied labor for all.
Fridays audience came just days afer the Holy See was
battered in a second round of grilling by a UN committee
over its record of handling priestly sex abuse. Neither the
pope nor Ban spoke of the issue. Francis did refer to another
topic at the UN hearings: the churchs opposition to abor-
tion, which UN committee members have criticized as an
impediment to womens access to reproductive health care.
Francis called for respect for life from conception to
natural death and his denunciation of the culture of
death echoed previous papal exhortations against abor-
tion.
Pope Urges Legitimate Redistribution of Wealth
ASSOCIATED PRESS | May 9
Pope Francis is reviving the Vatican as a credible and
respected international authority . Jorge Mario Bergoglio
presents himself as the ideal solution. Personally, he is the
antithesis of a corporatist elitist or greedy, self-serving politician.
He appears contrite and seless, free of prejudice and bile. He
scorns gratuitous opulence and appears to have no love for
wealth or materialism. Moreover, he has a plan, an alternate
model, a nancial system that values justice and equality for all
and protects the poor. Finally, Pope Francisthe vicar of Christ
and the leader of 1.2 billion Catholics and an ever more popular
churchhas the presence and power to sell his nancial system
to mankind. The Bible prophesies that the Catholic Church
will be popular among many peoples, and multitudes, and na-
tions, and tongues, and that it will play a decisive role in world
government. But it also prophesies specically that it will have
a decisive inuence over global trade and nance.
Trumpet, March 2014
ASIA
China to Build Aireld
on Disputed Island?
WANT CHINA TIMES | May 4
C
ui., .iuiu by the Peoples Libera-
tion Army Navy, may soon build a
military facility on the disputed John-
son South Reef to expand its scope in
the region, according to Duowei News,
an outlet run by overseas Chinese.
Te reef, part of the contested
Spratly Islands in the South China
Sea, is currently under Chinese
administration but also claimed by
Vietnam. Citing military experts,
Duowei said that China may soon
construct a new aireld on Johnson
South Reef to increase its force pro-
jection ability over the South China
Sea region. China will now look
MAY 9, 2014
7
THE TRUMPET WEEKLY
R
Ussi. Pvisiui1 Vladimir Putin has approved the
sale of Russias latest S-oo Triumf air defense guided
missile system to the Chinese military, according to reports
last week.
Beijing rst tried to buy the advanced anti-aircraf
weapon system back in :o::, but negotiations stalled in part
because Russia was concerned that China would copycat
the technology, and in part because Russia wanted to en-
sure that it could provide an ample supply of the high-tech
systems to its own military before selling it to any other
nation.
But now, in the afermath of Moscows occupation
and annexation of the Crimean Peninsula, Putin has new
impetus to shore up Russo-Chinese ties, economically and
militarily. Tis newfound impetus has reshued his priori-
ties and trumped his other concerns.
As a result, China stands poised to buy enough of the
systems to equip up to four battalions of the Peoples Lib-
eration Army. Such a quantity, according to the military
news website Huanqiu.com, would give China a strategic
advantage in both the Taiwan Strait and the airspace above
the Diaoyutai/Senkaku Islands, which lie at the center of
an increasingly tense dispute between Beijing and Tokyo.
So what was it that made Russia reshue its priorities
and green-light the milestone sale: Afer Putin grabbed
Crimea, Western powers labeled the annexation illegal and
began striving to isolate and punish Russia over it. Initially,
many in the West said they thought the entire world would
view the move the way they didas barbaric behavior on
Putins part. For example, United States President Barack
Obama initially said the nations were largely united in
believing Putin had violated Ukraines territory.
But Mr. Obamas statement was almost immediately ex-
posed as naive when China and India made clear that they
supported Putin. Putin later thanked Beijing and Delhi for
their support.
Soon afer, both India and China announced progress
toward massive energy deals with Russia. Of all nations,
Russia is uniquely able and willing to provide the secure
source of energy needed to power Chinas and Indias rapid
industrial and economic growth.
Besides fuel and weapons Russia also possesses mili-
tary know-how, which Putin appears increasingly willing
to share with his Asian neighbors. Tis willingness will
be on full display in three weeks when Russia and China
hold joint naval drills in the East China Sea. To under-
stand the signicance of Moscows increasingly eastward
gaze, and what results to expect from it, read Asia Stands
With Putin.
Follow Jeremiah Jacques: Twitter
Putin Green-lights Milestone Weapons Sale to China
Jeremiah Jacques | May 6
to build an aireld for the vi. Navy,
Duowei said, while it will be neces-
sary to send warships to complete the
project amid the territorial tensions.
Russia May Achieve
Goals in Ukraine
Without Invasion
REUTERS | May 5
N
.1os 1ov military commander
in Europe said on Monday he no
longer thought regular Russian troops
would enter eastern Ukraine, predict-
ing Moscow could achieve its goals
through the unconventional forces
stirring up trouble there.
U.S. Air Force Gen. Philip Breed-
love said it was a completely false
Russian narrative that it was only
Ukrainians rebelling in the east of
their country, saying it was clear that
special forces troops from Russia were
operating there as they did in Crimea
before its annexation.
Remember that [Russian President
Vladimir] Putin denied their pres-
ence and now he has admitted to their
presence in Crimea. Te same thing
will come out of Ukraine as time rolls
out, he told a military and diplomatic
audience in Ottawa.
Exactly what we saw in Crimea is
being mirrored in eastern Ukraine,
added Breedlove.
Russia has massed tens of thou-
sands of troops on its border with
eastern Ukraine, prompting fears that
Moscow might send ground forces in
to protect the rights of ethnic Russians.
Breedlove said that until a week ago,
he thought the most likely military re-
sponse from Russia would be to send
in troops to southern Ukraine and
secure a land bridge to the Peninsula
of Crimea.
Today I would tell you I dont think
thats the most likely course of action
I think now that Putin may be able
to accomplish his objectives in eastern
Ukraine and never go across the bor-
der with his forces, he said.
In that case, I think its the most
troublesome for .1o because if the
forces do not come across the border,
my guess is that many will want to try
to quickly go back to business as usual,
and I, for one, do not believe annexing
Crimea is business as usual.
More broadly in terms of .1o
policy, he said, Russias actions in
Ukraine had demonstrated that it
was not acting like a partner, and this
should prompt more members of the
.1o alliance to boost their defense
spending toward the agreed target of :
percent of gross domestic product.
We have come from a period where
we saw Russia as a partner, he said.
We are now in a very, very dierent
time, and I think individual nations
need to take this aboard and consider.
Red China insists it has a legal right
not only to Tibet but to many parts
of India and Southeast Asia. Their
constant dream for centuries has been
ultimate world conquest!
Herbert W. Armstrong,
Plain Truth, December 1959
MAY 9, 2014
8
THE TRUMPET WEEKLY
50K Somali Children
at Deaths Door
GUARDIAN | May 8
F
.iiic v.is, severe malnourish-
ment, enduring conict and poor
sanitation has lef Somalia facing a
humanitarian crisis, with ,o,ooo chil-
dren at deaths door and :. million
Somalis at risk of hunger, a coalition
of aid agencies has warned.
Twenty-three charities have
united to highlight the perilous state
of the country and make an urgent
appeal for the s8:: million short-
fall in humanitarian funding. Somalia
has received only :: percent of the
money it needs this year.
According to a report they have
compiled, pastoralists have been
slaughtering livestock because of
water and food shortages, while the
UN-backed Amisom forces oensive
against al-Shabaab in southern So-
malia has swelled the ranks of the :.:
million internally displaced people.
Women in the country have the
second-highest risk of maternal death
in the world, one in seven children is
acutely malnourished, and less than
one in four people has access to ad-
equate sanitation facilities. Moreover,
polio has returned, with :, cases
recorded in the past year.
TW
I N B R I E F
n U.S. to help bring back Nigerias
kidnapped girls
Te Pentagon reported May , that it
will dispatch a small team of intel-
ligence and negotiating experts to
Nigeria to aid in the search and rescue
mission for over :oo kidnapped girls.
Te girls were abducted over three
weeks ago on April : from an all-girls
boarding school in the northeastern
Bono state by the now world infa-
mous Boko Haram Islamist terrorist
group. Boko Haramwhose name
means Western education is forbid-
denthreatened to trade the girls as
slaves, arguing they shouldnt have
been in school anyway. I abducted
your girls, taunted the groups leader
Abubakar Shekau. Tere is a mar-
ket for selling humans. Allah says I
should sell. He commands me to sell.
Te kidnapping of the young girls
has now attracted more international
attention that might aid in terminat-
ing Boko Haram. Nigerian President
Goodluck Jonathan said he believed
that the kidnap of these girls will be
the beginning of the end of terror in
Nigeria. In addition to the personnel
that the United States will provide,
Britain, France and China will also
send teams of experts to aid the rescue
eorts. It is evident a formidable pres-
ence of international forces will work
to stem the tide of radical Islamnot
only in Nigeria, but in Central and
North Africa and the Middle East.
We expect that presence to become
predominantly European, consider-
ing Europes vulnerability due to its
geographic proximity and unpleasant
historic associations.
Related: The Hunger Myth
ANGLO-AMERICA
LATIN AMERICA/AFRICA
Three Quarters of
British Men Obese
by 2030?
THE TELEGRAPH | May 9
T
uvii qU.v1ivs of British men will
be overweight or obese by :o,o due
to increasingly unhealthy diets and lack
of exercise, a major study has warned.
Te UK has one of the worst rates
in Europe and three out of four men
will be at risk of heart disease or
stroke in the next :o years.
Currently around oo percent of
men are overweight or obese and
,, percent of women. However, ,
percent of men will be overweight
or obese by :o,o and o percent of
women.
Health experts said the shock-
ing gures showed the formidable
challenge that health and social care
services are facing and warned that
unhealthy lifestyles risked wiping out
improvements in medical care.
Te research into ,, euro-region
countries found rates in both male
and females are projected to increase
in almost all countries but there are
huge regional variations.
In Britain, more than one third
of men and women will be clinically
obese by :o,o, compared with just :o
percent in Romania and :, percent in
Belgium and the Netherlands.
Ireland is destined to become Eu-
ropes fattest nation in the same time
period, with o percent of men and 8
percent predicted to be overweight or
obese.
Report author Dr. Laura Webber, of
the UK Health Forum, said although
there was no silver bullet for tack-
ling the epidemic, the government
must do more to restrict unhealthy
food marketing and make healthy
food more aordable.
List of 76 Lawless
Obama Actions
DAILY CALLER | May 7
R
ivUniic. Si. Ted Cruz re-
leased a denitive list Wednesday
For nation shall rise against nation,
and kingdom against kingdom: and
there shall be famines, and pestilences,
and earthquakes, in divers places. All
these are the beginning of sorrows.
Matthew 24:7-8
MAY 9, 2014
9
THE TRUMPET WEEKLY
of ,o lawless Obama administra-
tion actions and abuses of power.
Cruzs Te Legal Limit Report No. ,
obtained by Te Daily Caller, delves
into little-known and little-reported
details of President Obamas execu-
tive actions.
Of all the troubling aspects of the
Obama presidency, none is more dan-
gerous than thepresidents persistent
pattern of lawlessness, his willing-
ness to disregard the written law
andinstead enforce his own policies
via executive at, Cruz stated in the
reports introductory remarks.
President Obama has openly deed
[rule of law] by repeatedly suspend-
ing,delaying, and waiving portions of
the laws that he is charged to enforce.
When President Obamadisagreed
with federal immigration laws, he
instructed the Justice Department to
cease enforcingthe laws. He did the
same thing with federal welfare law,
drug laws, and the federal Defense
ofMarriage Act, Cruz wrote. In the
more than two centuries of our na-
tions history, there is simply no prec-
edent for the WhiteHouse wantonly
ignoring federal law and asking others
to do the same.
Cruz details ,o specic actions over
eight chapters. Weve listed eight of
them, as chronicled by Cruz, below:
:. Obama implemented portions of
the uvi.m Act by executive action.
:. Ended some terror asylum
restrictions.
,. Recognized same-sex marriage
in Utah despite a Supreme Court stay
on a court order allowing the institu-
tion.
. Illegally revealed the existence
of sealed indictments in the Benghazi
investigation.
,. Illegally delayed Obamacare
verication of eligibility for healthcare
subsidies.
o. Ordered Boeing to re :,ooo
employees in South Carolina and shut
down a new factorybecause it was
non-union.
,. Terminated the pensions of
:o,ooo non-union Delphi employees
in the GM bankruptcy.
8. Government agencies are engag-
ing in Operation Choke Point, where
the governmentasks banks to choke
o access to nancial services for
customers engaging in conductthe
administration does not likesuch as
ammunition sales.
Putin Could Drive an
Army Through Gaps in
Britains Defenses
TELEGRAPH | May 9
F
vom 1ui moment he became
foreign secretary, William Hague
embarked on a very specic mission.
He was, he said, out to stop any stra-
tegic shrinkagein other words, to
make sure that Britains standing on
the world stage would not be dimin-
ished because there were cuts going
on at home. Te Conservatives did not
endure :, years in opposition, he de-
clares now and again, only to resume
the management of British decline.
But the stature of nations tends
to be decided by actions rather than
words, and Britains have told a rather
dierent story. We occupied Basra,
only to be forced out by Iranian-
backed militias. We then set up an
inquiry to ask why we fought, rather
than why we lost. Were about to aban-
don Afghanistan to the Taliban. We
performed a drive-by shooting in Lib-
ya, rightly helping to depose a dictator
but failing to follow up by oering
proper support to the new regime. Our
prime minister wanted to intervene in
Syria, but presented a case so weak that
our own Parliament voted it down. To
the outside world, Britain looks like it
is shrinking fairly quicklyalong with
other indebted, war-weary Western
powers. Our commitment looks shaky,
our judgment even worse.
And this, of course, is what has
fueled the [Ukrainian] crisis. Vladimir
Putin saw how things were changing,
and decided to give the Caucasus a
prod; then to see what would happen
if he annexed Crimea. Te answer, as
he suspected, was not very much. Now,
his unbadged militants are at work
in the east of Ukraine with dozens
dead. Still no reaction. Tis sent out a
clear message to Moscow and beyond:
the West has grown tired of policing
the world. And now, as a century ago,
things are up for grabs.
David Cameron is no isolationist.
He instinctively believes that Britain
should be a force for good in the world,
and has been remarkably quick to
deploy the military. Tis week, he has
Understanding the Times
of the Gentiles
When Jesus Christ came the rst time, He talked quite a lot about
the times of the Gentiles, which will be the greatest time of
suffering ever on the Earth. GERALD FLURRY
MAY 9, 2014
10
THE TRUMPET WEEKLY
made British special forces available to
help recover schoolgirls kidnapped by
Islamist militants in Nigeria. Last year,
he declared that he would close down
ungoverned spaces in the Sahara to
deny such groups a safe haven. To his
great credit, he overruled his own gen-
erals when deciding to stop a potential
genocide in Benghazi.
But when asked in the Commons
this week if he would keep defense
spending at the minimum for .1o
memberstwo percent of national in-
comehe dodged the question. And
here is the problem: A large gap has
emerged between what .1o lead-
ers say they want, and what theyre
willing to pay fora gap so large that
Putin thinks he can drive an army
through it. Germany is too dependent
on cheap Russian gas. France is too
dependent on lucrative Russian de-
fense contracts. And the rest of .1o
just doesnt want to know. Te Poles,
Czechs and Estonians are beginning
to realize that membership of this
alliance may not protect them afer
all.
IRS Audited 10 Percent
of Tea Party Donors
WASHINGTON TIMES | May 7
T
ui commi11ii uncovered new
information indicating that afer
groups provided the information to
the ivs, nearly one in :o donors were
subject to audit, Rep. Charles W.
Boustany Jr., Louisiana Republican
and chairman of the Ways and Means
Committees oversight panel, told ivs
Commissioner John Koskinen at a
hearing Wednesday.
Te revelation was made on the
same day that the House voted on
a nonbinding resolution asking the
Justice Department to appoint a spe-
cial prosecutor to investigate the ivs
targeting.
Investigators last year reported that
the ivs singled out tea party and other
conservative groups applying for tax-
exempt status and gave them special
scrutiny, including asking inappropri-
ate questions about their activities and
membership. Te request for donor lists
was among the inappropriate activities.
Te ivs initially denied to Con-
gress that it was singling out tea party
groups, despite vocal complaints from
groups that had their applications
delayed for years. But faced with the
internal audit, the agency admitted it
had been subjecting these groups to
special scrutiny.
Republicans said : conservative
groups were asked for their donor
lists. Te ivs initially told Congress
that those lists were destroyed, but
when they went through their les
they discovered three lists that werent
destroyed.
Rep. Dave Camp, Michigan Re-
publican and chairman of the House
Ways and Means Committee, asked
the ivs to review the names on those
lists to see whether any had been
audited. Te ivs reported back that :o
percent were auditedsubstantially
higher than the average rate of :per-
cent of average Americans who are
audited each year.
ivs has long insisted that Ameri-
cans should not worry about political
targeting at your agency because the
ivs has layers of internal protections
to guard against it. But in the course
of our investigation, however, we
found that Lois Lerner acted in de-
ance of these internal protections,
Mr.Boustany said.
Ms. Lerner ran the division over-
seeing nonprot groups. She has since
retired from the ivs but has refused to
testify to Congress about her role in
the targeting, citing her Fifh Amend-
ment right against self-incrimination.
Te House voted Wednesday to
hold her in contempt of Congress for
refusing to talk.
Mr. Koskinen acknowledged that
the agency needs to take steps to
assure taxpayers that audits are fair
and said they look forward to the c.o
review. He said the ivs has signicant
controls in place to try to make sure
audits are fair.
OPIC Lent Bidens
Friend $20 Million
THE EXAMINER | May 8
C
ocviss is set to vote today on
renewing the Overseas Private In-
vestment Corporation (the renewal is
tucked into the Electrify Africa Act).
A
vi wi still a capitalist democracy or have we gone
over into an oligarchic form of society in which in-
credible economic and political power now rests with the
billionaire class: Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Vermont socialist,
asked that question of Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen at
a hearing on Capitol Hill, Wednesday.
Yellen said shed prefer not to give labels, but she ad-
mitted to being very concerned about income inequality.
So, all of the statistics on inequality that youve cited
are ones that greatly concern me, and I think for the same
reason that youre concerned about them. Tey can shape
thedetermine the ability of dierent groups to participate
equally in the democracy and have grave eects on social
stability over time.
And so I dont know what to call our system or how
toI prefer not to give labels; but theres no question that
weve had a trend toward growing inequality and I person-
ally nd it very worrisome trend that deserves the attention
of policymakers.
Sanders told Yellen, Tere comes a point, where the bil-
lionaire class has so much political powerwhere the Koch
brothers are now, because of Citizens United, able to buy
and sell politiciansthey have so much political powerat
what point is that reversible: he asked. Yellen repeated
that she shares Sanders concern with inequalitybut its
up to the Congress to decide whats appropriate.
Does Capitalism or Oligarchy Describes U.S.
CNS NEWS | May 8
MAY 9, 2014
11
THE TRUMPET WEEKLY
ovic uses taxpayer backing to nance
and insure American companies when
they set up operations overseas.
For instance, in :o::, ovic ap-
proved a s:o million loan to help an
American businessman build a luxury
car dealership in Ukraine.
Te proceeds of the loan will be
used to (i) expand Winner Import
Ukraines automobile business, (ii)
construct and operate Winner
Autocity, which will have two new,
state-of-the-art dealership facilities
for Porsche and Land Rover/Jaguar
automobiles, each of which will be ,S
(showroom, service and stock)
Te car dealer, John Hynanksy, hap-
pens to be a good friend of Vice Presi-
dent Joe Biden and a donor to President
Obama and Biden. When Biden spoke
in Ukraine in :oo, he called out my
very good friend, John Hynanksy, a
very prominent businessman. In that
same speech, Biden said, Democracy
and free markets work best when they
deliver what people most want.
MOON_M-GUCCI/ISTOCK/THINKSTOCK
And while Americans are busy robbing
and cheating each other, what are our
leaders in the captains cabin doing?
Cheating on their taxes, employing
illegal immigrants, and spending
federal money to help personal busi-
nessesif the House Ethics Panel is to
be believed.
theTrumpet.com, Aug. 10, 2010
W
i 1iu to think of the moon as a static, dead world,
with no atmosphere and no plate tectonics. But there are
various signs the moon has been activevolcanoes and in-
dications of a magnetic eld frozen in rocks. Impact craters
that ooded with molten rock are also indications of more
active periods in the moons history. Now, some researchers
are suggesting that the residual magnetic elds contain hints
that the moon was once ipped on its side by a violent event.
All evidence indicates that the moon was formed when
a Mars-sized body collided with the early Earth, leaving
both in a molten state. Tis would have lef the moon with
a suciently molten core that it should have generated a
magnetic eld for hundreds of millions of years. Remnants
of that eld should remain
trapped in rocks that solidi-
ed while it was still in place
and remain trapped there to
this day.
A team of Japanese re-
searchers has now analyzed
magnetic data from two
lunar orbiters, the Lunar
Prospector and Kaguya.
Both orbited the moon at
low altitudes (under okilo-
meters) and tracked the local
magnetic elds. Afer elimi-
nating a variety of areas with complex magnetic anomalies,
the team looked at data from ,, dierent sites on the moon
and used the readings to calculate the orientation of the
moons magnetic eld at various points in its past.
Many of the data points clustered at the current pole.
But a second set clustered well away from there, some-
where between , and oo degrees from the existing pole.
Although the Earth has experienced some degree of polar
wander, the pole has
always made a gradual
track as the Earths
angular momentum
shifed. Here, it appears
that the moon made a
sudden jump, as there
are no indications of
gradual track between
these two locations.
As the authors note,
A change in the apparent pole position corresponds to a
reorientation of the lunar surface with respect to the rota-
tion axis. And this reori-
entation appeared to occur
relatively suddenly. Te
authors suggest a number
of events could have been
the cause, including giant
impacts, internal instabili-
ties, and the gravitational
disturbances caused by mi-
grations of the solar systems
gas giants.
Tis isnt the rst indi-
cation that the moon may
have shifed its orientation.
An earlier work examined the distribution of craters on its
surface . [S]ome researchers have suggested the near and
far side of the moon swapped places at some point in the
distant past.
Neither of the methods of tracking this shif have been
precise enough to indicate when this event took place .
But there certainly seems to be enough evidence of this
sort of shif to make the idea worth exploring further.
Did an Impact Knock the Moon on Its Side?
Arstechnica.com | May 9
OTHER NEWS
Mars is in a state of decay. It is probably dead, just as
we found the moon to be. The Bible also states that
there was a war in the universe (Revelation 12:7). It was
the most destructive war ever, leaving Mars and appar-
ently the rest of the universe in a state of decay! Man-
kind is destined to remove that decay from Mars and the
entire universe! Its hard to even imagine what a direct
and strong connection mankind has to the universe. We
will make the universe look like the garden of Eden! That
is mans destinyand you can prove it from the Bible.
Gerald Flurry, Trumpet, February 2004
MAY 9, 2014
12
THE TRUMPET WEEKLY
conventional arms control area that we previ-
ously managed to build together with Russia in
our region, said Mr. Krivas, who is in charge of
Lithuanias eastern relations.
Te agreement Moscow suspended was bi-
laterally established by Russia and Lithuania in
:oo:. It said the two countries would exchange
information regarding their armed forces, and
that each could conduct military inspections
of the other. Te agreement required Lithuania
to disclose information about the entirety of its
armaments, but Russia was required only to
share data about its armaments in Kaliningrad
Oblastthe Russian enclave situated on the Bal-
tic Sea between Poland and Lithuania.
Kaliningrad, which the Soviet Union annexed
from Germany in :,, remains of key strate-
gic importance to Russia. It is home to Russias
Baltic Sea Fleet and also hosts the Donskoye and
Chernyakhovsk air force bases.
Now Russia says it is no longer willing to up-
hold its end of the deal, which has fueled worries
among many in Lithuania and beyond.
Mr. Krivas said that the Kremlins ongoing
aggression in Ukraine has spawned fears among
many in Eastern Europe that Russia might try to destabi-
lize their nations next. [A]s long as the Russian leadership
pursues the policies of reinstating in one form or another
Moscows control and domination over the area once ruled
by the Soviet Union or, even further back in history, Rus-
sian Empire, Krivas said, such risk is always present.
He continued: Russias actions with regard to Ukraine
command an ever more cautious approach to possible
and even likely attempts by Russia to do the same with
regard to its other neighbors, including but not limited to,
the Baltic States.
Nuclear Weapons, Too?
Te suspension of the treaty is particularly worrying be-
cause of the possibility that Russia has nuclear weapons in
Kaliningrad. In :oo:, the United States infuriated Russia by
announcing plans to put missile defense systems in Poland.
Reports emerged saying Russias response to the announce-
ment included the deployment of nuclear weapons in
Kaliningradoutside the range of the defense system.
Moscow denied the reports, but in :oo, Wikileaks
released a secret document from the :oo: Congressional
Research Service report saying U.S. intelligence had, in
fact, detected the presence of nuclear weapons in Kalinin-
grad using satellite technology.
In light of these reports and the great likelihood that
Russias Kaliningrad arsenal includes nuclear weapons, the
Kremlins decision to put the kibosh on Lithuanian inspec-
tions takes on great signicance. Some analysts wonder if
the decision may be designed to give Putin space to move
armaments around during this time of heightened Russian
aggression. We view military activity in Kaliningrad with
concern, Mr. Krivas said.
Krivas also said that Moscows ongoing belligerence has
prompted Lithuania to map out a plan to boost its defense
expenditure, and also to support those suering under
Russias foreign aggression.
Krivas says that the rst step to restoring stability in
Eastern Europe is for Moscow to move its troops away
from its western border. First and foremost, Russia should
pull back the combat military forces it concentrated along
the Ukrainian border to the places of their permanent lo-
cation; and it should discourage the pro-Russian separat-
ists in Ukraine, many of whom seem to operate on direct
orders from Russia, from aggressive actions and armed
violence.
Whether Russia has actually pulled its troops back, as
Vladimir Putin claims, or not, Moscows aggression is hav-
ing a profound impact on Lithuania and all of Europe. To
learn the details and signicance of the European response,
read Te Crimean Crisis Is Reshaping Europe!
Follow Jeremiah Jacques: Twitter
CONCERN from page 1
COVER: MARKO MUMM/AFP/GETTY IMAGES