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China-Russia To Set Up a Lunar Research Station

March 10, 2021by Mary Jane Freeman in China, Economic development updates, General updates, Global Diplomacy, Russia, Space updates

China-Russia Sign MoU To Set Up a Lunar Research Station

March 9, 2021 (EIRNS) — Russia’s State Space Corporation Roscosmos chief Dmitry Rogozin and Director of the China National Space Administration (CNSA) Zhang Keijan this week signed a memorandum of mutual understanding on behalf of their governments on cooperation in creating an international lunar research station, Roscosmos and CNSA announced today, TASS reported.

The International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) is described as a comprehensive scientific experiment base, built on the lunar surface or in the lunar orbit, that can carry out multi-disciplinary and multi-objective scientific research activities including exploration and utilization, lunar-based observation, basic scientific experiment and technical verification, and long-term autonomous operation, Space News reported today.

China and Russia have previously signed agreements for cooperation on China’s multi-spacecraft Chang’e-7 and Russia’s Luna 27 missions and a joint data center for lunar and deep space exploration. Chang’e-7 is scheduled for around 2023-24, and Russia’s Luna 27 mission, to be preceded by Luna 25 and Luna 26 missions, is scheduled for this decade.

According to a statement by the China National Space Administration, the two sides will uphold the principle of joining consultation, construction, and sharing, to push forward cooperation concerning the building of the international research station on the Moon, the statement read. The project will also “ be open to nations that are interested in the project as well as partners of the international community.”

The international lunar scientific and research station will be a comprehensive base for long-term, autonomous experiments, providing a platform that is tasked to enable exploration and use of the Moon, and a slew of basic scientific experiments and technology verification projects either on the lunar surface or in the lunar orbit, according to the CNSA. Previously, China and Russia have signed agreements on cooperation on two planned missions, the “Chang’e-7” mission to investigate the lunar pole and a “Moon Resources-1” mission.

According to Space News, the early stage of the ILRS would consist of a number of discrete spacecraft, in contrast to a more complex, integrated program such as the International Space Station. Reportedly, China will soon begin construction of a Chinese Space Station. This will be an important ingredient in China’s planned deep space human spaceflight. In May 2020, China tested a new generation spacecraft and is reportedly developing two separate super-heavy-lift launchers for space infrastructure and crewed missions.

Russian Academic Identifies Mackinder Geopolitics as Enemy of Russia and China

July 14, 2021by Mary Jane Freeman in China, General, General updates, Geopolitics updates, Global Diplomacy, Russia, World war danger updates

Russian Academic Identifies Mackinder Geopolitics as Enemy of Russia and China—

July 13, 2021 (EIRNS)—Global Times yesterday published an interview with Alexander Lukin, head of the Department of International Relations at the Higher School of Economics and director of the Center for East Asian and SCO Studies at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations. In a brief editorial note at the beginning, GT notes that China and Russia have witnessed stronger ties, especially given the US’s continued pursuit of ideological confrontation in the world. The question to be addressed is, “How will the trilateral relations among China, Russia, and the US develop and shape the world?”

The interview is extensive, covering a wide range of topics within the China-Russia relationship, but particularly notable is the matter of geopolitics, which the GT interviewers introduced by citing Zbigniew Brzezinski’s “The Grand Chessboard,” in which he warned “that potentially, the most dangerous scenario [for the United States] would be a grand coalition of China, Russia, and perhaps Iran, an ‘anti-hegemonic’ coalition united not by ideology but by complementary grievances [toward the United States].”

“This line of thought agrees that basically the main task of American policy in the new Eurasia should be avoiding the emergence of a single power or alliance of powers hostile to American interests that would control the Eurasian space,” Lukin replied. “This idea has a very long history. In the first half of the 20th century, many Western experts, beginning with the founders of geopolitics, Halford Mackinder and Nicholas John Spykman, said that control over Eurasia was very important. If an anti-Western force gains control over Eurasia, it would be very dangerous for the US and Western Europe.”

Lukin argues that after the fall of the Soviet Union, the US became “too proud” of itself and overestimated its influence in the world. “However, the collapse of the Soviet Union did not stop the general tendencies of world history, including in international relations in many countries which contributed to their becoming stronger, like China, India, Brazil, and others,” he said. “Russia also reemerged as a strong power. India and several other countries also became stronger. But American politicians did not want to see this trend. They thought that they could still control the entire world and punish those who did not conform to their position. Their policy of pressure and containment has only stimulated the coordination between Russia and China, and made their strategic partnerships stronger.”

Compared to Kissinger and Brzezinski, says Lukin, American politicians today don’t really know what they are doing. “Trump wanted to improve relations with Russia, but he could not for domestic reasons,” Lukin continued. “Now you see some articles written by influential American experts, who seem to begin to understand that Russian-Chinese rapprochement is a kind of problem for the US. But they still don’t know what to do about it. They are discussing how to break the Russia-China de facto alliance without giving either Russia or China anything. So that’s also not a very smart position, I would say. They are not going to get anything for nothing. I don’t think they can.

“Contrary to what they might believe, they cannot break our strategic partnership, because it’s based on Russia and China’s national interests.” Full interview is here.

Beethoven: Sparks of Joy!

March 9, 2021by Mary Jane Freeman in Daily Beethoven — Sparks of Joy, General, Music updates

Beethoven: Sparks of Joy – King Stephen Overture, Op. 117

In 1811, Beethoven was commissioned to provide music for two stage works written by the playwright August von Kotzebue. The occasion was the dedication of a new German-language theatre in Pest (part of today’s Budapest), built to alleviate the nationalist feelings incipient in Hungary and to celebrate the loyalty of Hungary to the Austrian monarch.
“King Stephen, or Hungary’s First Benefactor” relates events in the life of Hungary’s founder. Although the Overture remains popular today, the remaining nine musical numbers that Beethoven composed are rarely heard. 
Here is the complete performance with full score, performed by the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia. [Notes by Margaret Scialdone.]

Helga Zepp-LaRouche Briefs China Plus ‘World Today’ Program—‘The New Name for Peace Is Development’

July 14, 2021by Mary Jane Freeman in China, Economic development updates, General updates, Global Diplomacy, Healthcare, Helga media coverage or interview, Helga statement, article, transcript, Helga Zepp-LaRouche, New Silk Road / BRI updates, Russia, World Land-Bridge updates, World war danger updates

July 13 (EIRNS)—Helga Zepp-LaRouche gave the following interview to China Plus radio’s World Today broadcast today. China Plus is the official English website of China Radio International. The interview is the second news story starting at 12:55 minutes

CRI: Welcome back. The United Nations Human Rights Council has passed China’s resolution on the contribution of development to the enjoyment of all human rights, at the 47th session, which emphasizes the right to development and that the aim of development is to improve the developing of the people. For more, we are now joined on the line by Helga Zepp-LaRouche, founder of the Schiller Institute, a Germany based economic and political think tank. Thanks for joining us Dr. LaRouche.

HELGA ZEPP-LAROUCHE: Yes, hello! How are you?

CRI: I’m good, thank you. So, the resolution stresses that development and the realization of human rights and fundamental freedoms are interdependent and mutually reinforcing. How do we understand those?

ZEPP-LAROUCHE: First of all, let me express my congratulation. I think this is an excellent development, because hopefully this will inspire a very productive discussion everywhere around the world, what is the right definition of human rights. And I think the interdependence between development and human rights and freedom, you can see best if you look at the lack of development. Because then you have poverty, and you have still on the planet, 2 billion people who have no access to clean water, more than 800 million are and you have no freedom if you have all day to try to get a little bit of water and a little bit to eat, just to try to stay alive, so you have no freedom under these conditions. So therefore, I think development is very clearly the precondition for both human rights with freedom.

CRI: Yes, but that is very different from the Western explanation for human rights, which all starts with the ballot box and has everything to do with individual freedom. How did it get the different priorities when it comes to the human rights issue?

ZEPP-LAROUCHE: Well first of all, I think one has to see that the label isn’t always consistent with the content. Many things which have the label “democracy” and “human rights” have quite some different content, and in the case of the Western parliamentarian system, or unfortunately even the presidential system in some countries, is more a plutocracy, where the money of the multinationals and the big banks determine who gets a seat. Also, I think if you look at the overemphasis of individual freedom it has degenerated into a notion, everything is allowed, and the common good is regarded as a suppression of these individual freedoms.

Now, if you have a crisis, like in the case of COVID-19, you can see what the consequences of this is. China and some other Asian nations took strict measures for the common good, and it worked well, and then also the individuals profited because they were rid of the pandemic earlier; while in the West you had a back and forth, people were even protesting against having to wear masks, regarding that as an intrusion in their personal freedom, and they had to pay a much, much bigger price.

CRI: Well, representatives from countries including Venezuela, Cuba, and Pakistan also made speeches to appreciate China for delivering those draft resolutions and stressed that development should be the focus of every country, especially developing countries. But why is the resolution getting support from these countries?

ZEPP-LAROUCHE: Well, it’s very simple: Because in the entire post-World War II period, the IMF conditionalities prevented real development in the developing sector. They were told, you have to pay your debt first before you can invest in infrastructure or health, and the result was a blatant underdevelopment and incredible poverty. So, China, even before the Belt and Road, invested in railways in Africa and other infrastructure, but especially with the Belt and Road Initiative and the COVID crisis, it became very clear that these countries regarded the help from China—which was denounced as “vaccine diplomacy” by some Western media—but these developing countries regarded the attitude of China as a life-saver for them. So, it’s no surprise that they would support it.

CRI: And I think you earlier mentioned about what should be the right definition of human rights. And another question is who gets to pick what the most basic human rights should be? And have you got a feeling that this has been heavily guided by a small number of mostly Western nations which has led to a general bias in favor of the civil, political liberties over economic, social, and cultural rights?

ZEPP-LAROUCHE: Yes. You can see that right now very clearly in the case of the so-called “identity policy.” For example, between the EU Commission and countries such as Hungary, Poland, Slovenia, there is a big tension right now, whereas in the East, they have rejected the effort by the EU Commission to impose the values of the Western liberal European countries.

So, I think what needs to be put up front again, is the Five Principles of peaceful coexistence and the idea of non-interference in the different social systems, because they are, due to customs, traditions, cultural heritage and these must be respected.

CRI: In 2019 a study by the Center for New American Security—that is a Washington-based think tank—says that China’s actions in the UN were part of this effort to redefine how such institutions are run and shift away from Western concepts of democracy and human rights. What is your thought on those?

ZEPP-LAROUCHE: Well, China has been the leading nation for centuries, and only in the 18th and 19th centuries, because of the colonialist attacks and Opium Wars by the British, you know, that that was diminished. But now, China is again the second largest economy in the world. The lifting of poverty of 850 million people represents a tremendous civilizational contribution, and therefore, I think, it is absolutely correct that China should have a major role in this discussion.

CRI: OK, but do you feel the widespread back and forth surrounding human rights issues around the world currently has been highly politicized? And sometimes it has even been used as a tool for political purposes and sometimes as an excuse to put pressure on other countries or even invade other countries?

ZEPP-LAROUCHE: Yes. These notions, human rights and democracy, have become like a two by four: You can smash any argument into the ground. So, I think this double standard needs to be corrected. Those people in the West who support sanctions under conditions of the COVID-19 crisis against such countries as Syria, Yemen, Iran, Venezuela—I think altogether 30 countries—I mean, this is a violation of human rights if you ever have seen one. Or, if you look at how Assange is treated, or what happened to Snowden, all these people just did the right thing, and they have been treated in an absolutely horrible way. So, this double standard should be stopped.

CRI: What are the consequences of such double standards or politicizing such human rights issues? Is it like shifting our focus away from the real human rights problems?

ZEPP-LAROUCHE: Yes, it poisons the atmosphere, and it degenerates the idea of human rights, which is actually a beautiful idea, and makes it a victim to geopolitical reasons.

Now, the Schiller Institute is upholding this concept of the “New Name for Peace Is Development.” This comes originally from Pope Paul VI in 1967 in his Encyclical Populorum Progressio, where he coined that idea that the “new name for peace is development.”

And this is very important right now, concretely in Afghanistan. Look, for example, NATO spent there 20 years for absolutely nothing, and now the question is what’s to come out of Afghanistan? Will you continue the geopolitical war? Or, will you have an agreement among all neighbors, like Russia, China, India, Pakistan, Iran, and have real development? The real development would mean to extend the New Silk Road, the Belt and Road Initiative into Afghanistan, but also into Iraq, Syria, Yemen, the whole region. And then you can have peace. So this is not an abstract academic notion, this is an extremely actual issue, that the idea that real peace does require development, that that is a precondition without which nothing will function.

CRI: OK, thank you Dr. Helga Zepp-LaRouche, founder of the Schiller Institute, a Germany-based political and economic think tank.

Biden’s Syria Attacks Aid ISIS, says Sen. Black

March 8, 2021by Mary Jane Freeman in Color Revolutions, Counterintelligence, General updates, Geopolitics updates, World war danger updates

Sen. Richard Black: Biden Attacks in Syria Are Aiding ISIS

March 7 (EIRNS) — Former Virginia State Sen. Richard Black told PressTV in an interview that the U.S. air strike on Iraqi PMF units operating in Syria actually amounted to U.S. support for ISIS. Colonel Black said he had previously reported his suspicion that ISIS could’ve been responsible for the middle of the three recent rocket attacks in Iraq, the one on the Balad air base, since Iraqi forces were engaged at that moment in an operation against ISIS cells north of Baghdad. Otherwise, he noted, there’s been very little discussion about the possibility of ISIS acting as a “third force” in Iraq to provoke conflict between America and Iran.

“The (Iraqi) PMU forces have mainly fought against Daesh, and they have been highly effective against them. Therefore, when the U.S. attacks the PMU, it assists Daesh terrorists in Iraq and Syria,” Sen. Black said. “The Biden Administration chose to use the rocket attacks on the Green Zone as a pretext to attack Iraqi (anti-terror) forces, who were effectively blocking Daesh militants from operating along the Syrian-Iraqi border. The attacks targeted sovereign Syrian territory and were in clear violation of international law,” Sen. Black said. He noted that, “It is unlikely that the U.S. really knows who fired the rockets.”

Sen. Black suggested U.S. policy is giving ISIS a kind of “Syria White Helmets” capability. “A (U.S.) policy that always assumes that Iraqi anti-terror forces fired the rockets gives Daesh the power to trigger an American airstrike against its enemies whenever Daesh chooses. Daesh fires rockets; we blame the Iraqi militias; the U.S. bombs Iraqi forces. That strategy is unfair and immoral,” he said. It should be noted that Sen. Black’s interview was picked up by Sputnik as well, which highlighted his comments on the necessity of a U.S. military withdrawal from the region. “It is within the power of the U.S. President to stop these wars. However, he cannot accomplish this without totally removing military forces from the region. The U.S. has repeatedly used attacks on its military forces as justification for new troop build-ups. If Joe Biden wanted to create a lasting, positive, legacy, he would order all U.S. troops to leave the Middle East within 90 days. However, I do not expect this to happen,” Black concluded.

China: Space Station by 2022!

March 8, 2021by Mary Jane Freeman in China, Economic development studies, Economic development updates, General updates, Global Diplomacy, Scientific research studies, Space updates

China: Space Station to Be Unveiled by 2022!

Mar. 6 (EIRNS)–The China National Space Administration (CNSA), has announced that 11 launches are planned with 12 astronauts by 2023, and the inauguration of a space station by 2022.

The goals were made public on the sidelines of a conference of the National Committee of Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference on Saturday by former astronaut and current deputy chief engineer of the China Manned Space program, Yang Liwei.

According to reports in Tass and Sputnik press, Yang encouraged youth to join the space exploration efforts. The CNSA concluded its third recruitment campaign of astronauts last October, which includes 17 men and one woman. Previous campaigns focused only on military personnel, but because their ambitious plan to inaugurate a space station by 2022 will include a variety of disciplines, such as engineering and construction, the recruitment has been opened to civilians.

Growing U.S. Acceptance of Vaccine Usage

March 8, 2021by Mary Jane Freeman in COVID-19, Economic development updates, General updates, Healthcare, Scientific research studies

Vaccination Is Increasing Americans’ Acceptance of Vaccines

March 7 (EIRNS) – A number of new polls appear to show a continuing increase in acceptance of COVID-19 vaccination as the vaccines are actually available and their distribution has reached tens of millions of people without ill effects, The Hill reported March 4.

There was a point in September 2020 when no more than 15% of Americans in some polls said they would get vaccination for COVID if it were available. By late January, Kaiser Family Foundation and Axios/Ipsos polling showed that 55-57% intended to get the vaccine or had already received a shot.

But in a Pew Research Center poll published Feb. 26, some 50% of U.S. adults surveyed between Feb. 16 and Feb. 21 said they would “definitely or probably” get vaccinated, in addition to 19% who had already received at least one shot; so acceptance appeared to have risen to near 70%.

The Pew poll reported that just over 60% of Black Americans now said they had been vaccinated or intended to, whereas only 42% had indicated willingness in November. Acceptance among Hispanics remained lower in the latest poll, however, just over 40%.

A section of the forthcoming EIR, “Vaccination: The General Welfare”, reports on the pace of COVID vaccination around the world – the successes and the critical and dangerous problems – and includes an important interview with the head of Meharry Medical College in Tennessee, who focuses on this subject. Meharry is the leading medical school among the Historically Black Colleges and Universities.

Beethoven: Sparks of Joy!

March 7, 2021by Mary Jane Freeman in Daily Beethoven — Sparks of Joy, General updates, Music updates

Beethoven: Sparks of Joy — the incomparable violin concerto in D major

Beethoven composed his only violin concerto in 1806, specifically for the young violinist Franz Clement, whose playing was described as being of “indescribable tenderness”. The premier was chaotic, with Clement at one point interrupting the program to play one of his own compositions while holding the violin upside-down! Other violinists attempted the work with little success, and the concerto languished for several decades. It was the sensational 1844 performance by the 13-year-old Joseph Joachim, with Felix Mendelssohn conducting, which firmly established Beethoven’s Violin Concerto as one of the monuments in the repertoire.
Itzhak Perlman and Daniel Barenboim collaborated in this extraordinary 1992 performance. [Notes by Margaret Scialdone.]

Russia Denounces Sanctions on Syria as “Collective Punishment”

July 10, 2021by Mary Jane Freeman in Color Revolutions, General, General updates, Geopolitics updates, Global Diplomacy, Russia, World war danger updates

Russia Denounces Sanctions on Syria as “Collective Punishment” —

July 9 (EIRNS)–In a press conference following the Astana format meeting on Syria yesterday, held in Kazakhstan,  Russian Special Presidential Envoy for Syria Alexander Lavrentyev denounced what he called the “collective punishment” of the Syrian people through Western sanctions. “We believe the consultations that we have held here in Nur-Sultan give hope that our call on the international community [will make it possible] to move the focus from efforts to stabilize the situation in Syria in military terms to humanitarian issues and activities aimed at providing humanitarian assistance to the Syrian people,” he pointed out. “And definitely, the deplorable practice of collective punishment for the Syrian people has to end,” Lavrentyev added.

Humanitarian aid needs to be delivered through the country’s legitimate authorities, and in this regard, Russia calls for the establishment of a mechanism to deliver humanitarian aid to all parts of Syria via Damascus, he said.

About 24 hours after Lavrentyev’s remarks, the UN Security Council passed a compromise resolution, today, on extending the UN mandate for cross-border delivery of humanitarian aid supplies from Turkey to Syria’s Idlib province. The new resolution extends the mandate for six months until Jan. 10, 2022, with an automatic extension for another six months until July 10, 2022, subject to U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres issuing a report on the “transparency” of the aid operation and progress on delivering aid across conflict lines within Syria as Russia wanted. The resolution also welcomes “all efforts and initiatives to broaden the humanitarian activities in Syria, including water, sanitation, health, education, and shelter” as well as early recovery projects.

American Scientists: No to FBI Anti-China Witch-hunt

March 7, 2021by Mary Jane Freeman in Counterintelligence, General updates, Geopolitics updates

American Scientists Fight Back Against FBI’s Anti-China, Anti-Science Witch-hunt

March 6 (EIRNS)–Hundreds of America’s leading scientists, including six Nobel Prize recipients in chemistry, physics and medicine, have issued two powerful denunciations of the FBI’s criminal prosecution of hundreds of Chinese scientists in the United States, including American citizens of Chinese dissent, as well as Americans who have collaborated with Chinese institutions for the advancement of human knowledge. These attacks, directed by FBI Director Christopher Wray, in collaboration with the psychotic attacks on China from President Trump’s Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, were exposed in the EIR Special Report of Nov. 22, 2019, Stop the McCarthyite With-hunt Against China and President Trump. Now, professors from leading US universities have issued two public letters defending targets of this atrocity — one from Harvard, one from MIT — spelling out clearly that the charges are false, are politically motivated, and go far beyond the persecution of these scientists and educators, but are in fact direct attacks on science itself, and on America’s leadership in international scientific research. 

The FBI targets in question are Professor Charles Lieber, Chairman of the Harvard chemistry department and a world leader in nanotechnology research, and Professor Gang Chen, the Chairman of the MIT mechanical engineering department, also a leader in nanotechnology. Lieber, described by the 42 signers of the March 1 letter as “one of the great scientists of his generation,” was arrested in January 2020 for infractions regarding his federal reporting of his participation in China’s “Thousand Talents” program, which aims to recruit scientists from around the world to work in China or in cooperation with Chinese scientific research centers. There were no secrets involved, only technical infractions normally simply corrected, but now criminalized, through a “tragically misguided government campaign,” which “reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of modern science,” Lieber’s defenders write. This campaign, they add, “is threatening not only the United States position as a world leader in academic research, but science itself.” While Lieber is the “most notable” scientist targeted by the FBI, they add, “these prosecutions are rampant.”  see https://beta.documentcloud.org/documents/20493785-read-the-full-letter-from-harvard-scientists-calling-to-save-professor-charles-lieber-and-scientific-collaboration 

Over 170 members of the MIT faculty signed a similar letter defending Prof. Gang Chen, arrested on Jan. 14 of this year. He faces similarly false charges which could sentence him to 30 years in prison and a huge fine. “We are troubled that the complaints against Professor Chen vilifies what would be considered normal academic and research activities, including promoting MIT’s global mission,” the letter reads. It adds: “Because America’s competitiveness depends so heavily on scientific and technological talent from abroad, its national security is harmed by the message that the US government will question the loyalty of foreign scientists.”

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