By Peter Koenig

February 18, 2016 "Information Clearing House" - February in Geneva. It is utterly frustrating living the daily lie and slander propaganda against Russia and against President Bashar al-Assad of Syria, of this ‘neutral’ country, Switzerland, where soon peace talks are expected to begin. The UN hub in Geneva has in the past often served for peace negotiations, for mediation talks, but also failed more often than not, always when the American interests were not accommodated by an agreement.

How could it be different in the case of Syria? – Switzerland, like Brussels, has become the epicentre of European neoliberal politics with a broadcast system emitting half-hourly Putin and Assad bashing news. The first being labelled as a human rights abuser responsible for the Ukrainian war, for the ‘annexation’ of Crimea, for thousands of Syrian deaths and tens of thousands of refugees, as a result of Russia bombarding Syria; refugees stranded and starving at the Turkish border and eventually invading Europe. Mr. Assad is being called a ferocious dictator, who does not shy from killing his own people and has to be removed for the good of the world. There is constant talk about a ‘transition government’, meaning without Mr. Assad, not even remotely considering that Syria is a sovereign nation, and that the Syrian people should have a say in who will be their president – and not at all foreign forces, who are responsible for the criminal massacres and war in the first place.

Mr. Assad and his secular Arab Socialist Ba’ath party is indeed not convenient for the neo-colonial interests of the west. Never mind that he had been re-elected with a more than 80% majority by Syrians, just about 20 months ago. Mr. Gadhafi, who intended with the riches of Libya to free Africa from the continuous economic oppression of the west, was also a socialist at heart and very inconvenient for the fascist capitalist west. Frankly, what Swiss news are portraying is worse than Fox and CNN together and doesn’t make for neutral grounds amenable for peace talks.

Constant western-biased anti-Russia, anti-Assad propaganda is not offering the friendly neutral environment needed to talk seriously about peace. It rather emits an ambiance of negative vibes, a premise for doomed negotiations, even before the talks begin. Add to this, that Washington has absolutely no intention to reach a permanent cessation of armed conflicts, a ‘peace agreement’. All Washington wanted in Munich and will want in Geneva is time and space for its allies-in-crime, the European NATO puppets, the Saudis, the Turks, the Isis – and the ‘moderate rebels’ (sic-sic) to re-arm and regroup.

Washington will never let go – of its objective of regime change in Syria. It is not in their game plan; it’s not in the cards, it’s not part of the PNAC (Plan for a New American Century) which is still highly valid and being followed almost to the letter. The PNAC pursues total submission of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) – and ultimately full spectrum dominance and world supremacy, control of all the globe’s resources and of all the globe’s people. A dispensable army of slaves. In fact, this massive army of serfs is much too large for the Zionist-Anglo-Saxon empire’s taste. These people cost too much; they eat too much; they use too many resources.

And here we come to a number of the monster’s multiple destructive tentacles: The people-mass eventually has to be reduced to about a billion or two. Easier to control and manage. The Rockefeller / Kissinger dictum of the fifties and sixties – from which emerged an economy of control: GMO-agriculture that can inflict famine, infertility (as already tested in the 1990s in India) and deadly or debilitating diseases. Another tentacle spreads biological and disease warfare, take the Ebola epidemic in West Africa in 2014 and the recent Zika outbreak, not coincidentally emerging and being tested in Central and South America, notably in Brazil, a country Washington wants to subdue and dominate, much like they have managed in Argentina with an ‘election coup’

(http://www.globalresearch.ca/argentina-a-quiet-neoliberal-coup-detat-in-latin-americas-southern-cone/5492654

 http://www.globalresearch.ca/argentina-revisited-one-month-on-towards-a-neoliberal-democratic-dictatorship/5502615).

The Zika virus has been created in the early sixties, is patented and is owned by the Rockefeller Foundation

(http://www.globalresearch.ca/who-owns-the-zika-virus/5505323).

Yet another killer-arm of the Washington monster is inflicting mass destruction through the western dollar-based financial system, as We the People continue witnessing in Greece, without even a hint of interfering in solidarity with our European brothers. Nothing, zilch. Self-styled King Obama knows there is no risk of interference by Europe. His puppet, Draghi, a Goldman Sachs exec, and President of the so-called European Central Bank (sic) is directing the European economy on behalf of the FED. Mr. Draghi is the epitome of a hypocrite.

The European un-leaders are bought by neo-capitalism and its projected personal gains for them. They are spineless stooges without courage of standing up for their sovereign rights. Anybody, any nation who would dare to intervene on behalf of Greece, on behalf of European solidarity, on behalf of the cradle of Europe and of Democracy itself, is scared to be sanctioned, economically, or if must be, by assassination. As a daily occurrence, killer drones – all approved by Assassin-in-Chief Mr. Obama himself – are launched from the US main military base in Europe, the Ramstein airbase in Germany, the stronghold of Europe who has sold her soul and honor to the Anglo-Zionist empire, based in Washington, with branches in Tel-Aviv and Brussels.

The EU is so subjugated to the nefarious White House – Pentagon – FED-cum-Wall Street ‘troika’ – for reasons which are difficult to comprehend – that they keep obeying orders for ‘sanctioning’ Russia, like pathetic masochists. These sanctions hurt Europe much more than they hurt Russia. We are made to believe that Russia’s economy suffers tremendously, that Russians become increasingly unhappy with their government, that Russia is at the brink of breaking down with social upheavals. This is far from correct. Maybe that would be the case, if Russia were still to depend on the west, as she did when Gorbachev and Yeltsin sold out the Russian Federation to Washington in the 1990s. But Russia is no longer dependent on the west. Russia and China have forged a new alliance with the remaining BRICS (Brazil, India and South Africa), the SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization) and Iran. The truth is that Mr. Putin still has an approval rating of close to 80%.

So – what chance for Syria? – Let it not be forgotten, the empire will never let go, not as long as it is still kicking. And kicking it is, though ever more feebly – but ever more ferociously, as does a dying beast. The United States and her vassal allies are on a deadly amok rampage which includes Syria and the entire MENA region. Any country in the path of resistance, like Venezuela, Brazil, Iran, Syria, Palestine and others – will never be free and at peace, no matter how many billions are spent on fake peace talks, and even make-believe Peace Accords, see Iran – these countries are intended to eventually go the way of Libya, or the way of Greece – or both – unless – unless Europe wakes up. Granted, it would almost take a revolution. But it is never too late. Over the past few months there has been plenty of talk by EU/EC officials, including Jean-Claude Junker, President of the European Commission, that the EU and its common currency are at the verge of collapse. Do they actually believe it? Or is it again sheer propaganda? It doesn’t really matter, but a collapse might be the solution for countries like Greece, Spain, Portugal, Ireland – back to their roots, regroup and rehabilitate their economy as sovereign nations.

This is the premise we have to keep in mind when we talk about possible ‘solutions’ to the “Syria crisis”, the “refugee crisis”, the “economic crisis”, even “the oil crisis”. They are all fabricated. While the western elite is in charge and We, the People, allow the empire to lash around the world with economic sanctions, with bombs, with threats of a nuclear WWIII – and nobody even remotely seems to attempt stopping the monster (except for Russia) – there is simply no chance in heaven and on earth that our globe will be able to live in harmony and peace. To have a chance at peace, the multi-tentacled monster must be subdued and silenced. And we are not talking about more blood. It is a question of countries like Switzerland which had a historic reputation of diplomatic mediation to wake up, to shed their fears of Washington, regain full sovereignty and regain their prowess of independence and autonomy to act as a fair and honest peace broker. The same applies to the rest of Europe: Wake up!

What is of course never mentioned by the main stream media pundits, who pretend knowing every detail so arrogantly well, down to the populace convincing details, is that this war was instigated by the CIA already in 2007, identifying and training their terror organizations, leading in 2011 to a full-fledged civil war under the pretext of the Arab Spring (sic) against the legitimate, democratically elected President of Syria, Bashar al-Assad. That’s not all: these terrorist groups have now permanent US / NATO advisors, permanent funding from the US, NATO and EU NATO countries, the Saudis, Qatar and Turkey.

Russia’s Prime Minister, Dimitri Medvedev, when he recently talked to Euro News, made a few excellent points, about Russian sovereignty and Russia’s growing economic independence from the west. But he seems to still be dreaming of ‘coming to an agreement with our [western] colleagues and partners on key issues [on Syria]…’ – what is meant with colleagues and partners are the US and its European minions. – Mr. Medvedev, what does it take to get real, to face reality? There is no intention of the US and its allies-in-crime to reach an agreement on Syria, under which Syria would remain a sovereign nation, that would be honoured by the west. Everything is fake. The ‘serious’ peace talks are fake. Look at Palestine. Fifty years of ‘Peace Talks’, but the Israeli killing (with full US consent) of Palestinians and the destruction of their legitimate home land is today more brutal than ever.

How, Mr. Medvedev, could such peace talks be real if the main protagonist, the government of Bashar al-Assad is not even invited to the table in Munich or eventually in Geneva? How can that be real? Terrorists and assassins, like the Saudis, the Turks, Washington and their common brain-children, the IS terrorists in various forms and shapes, including ‘soft or moderate opposition groups’ are there. Moderate opposition – Media pundits, give us a break! – Even a Pentagon general not long ago admitted it was difficult to identify the five or six moderate rebels, whose training cost the US hundreds of millions. Does this speak for peace, or for war, for more bloodshed? How come, Mr. Medvedev, the legitimate leader of the Syrian Republic, whose fate is being discussed, is not invited? Does this give you hope to eventually reach an agreement with those criminals you would like to see as ‘colleagues and partners’, whose only goal is ‘regime change’? – With all due respect, Mr. Prime Minister, facing reality is healthier than being disappointed time and again.

Then there is the illusion that the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty was signed and therefore in force and being implemented. Do you realize, Mr. Medvedev, that the United States never honors any agreement that does not serve them and has absolutely no intention, never had, to implement this or any other arms reduction treaty? To the country. You must be aware that Washington and the Pentagon just a few days ago announced with big fanfare to quadruplicate the military budget for NATO in Europe, putting more men and tanks and missiles closer to the Russian border. This is not exactly an arms reduction – wouldn’t you say?

Perhaps and most likely you know this all. But playing the ‘diplomatic hope card’ vis-à-vis these warrior thugs does not – never – incite them to be honest peace makers. To the contrary, when Washington and its European cronies see Russia’s desperate attempt to make friends with the west, they just further demolish, denigrate, vilify and deceive Russia through their presstitute media, so as to ridicule any truthful Russian effort to seek world harmony rather than conflict.

To witness how Washington thinks and acts by imposing punishment (sanctions) and lifting them (the carrot and stick approach), just look at Iran – some of the sanctions were barely lifted a few weeks ago, when new ones were imposed. And the game goes on. In the foreseeable future no authentic and truthful coalition or military cooperation is likely between your country, Mr. Medvedev, which has candid intentions, and the deceptive west, not as long as the monster is breathing.

If the US is calling the shots on Syria peace talks, whenever and wherever they may take place, with the legitimate government of Syria not even present, there is no hope for Syria. Russia must be firm. Regime change is not on the table. The people of the sovereign nation of Syria are the only ones to elect their president. This principle must be upheld, not only for Syria’s sake, but it must set a precedent for other cases to follow.

Peter Koenig is an economist and geopolitical analyst. He is also a former World Bank staff and worked extensively around the world in the fields of environment and water resources. He writes regularly for Global Research, ICH, RT, Sputnik, PressTV, CounterPunch, TeleSur, The Vineyard of The Saker Blog, and other internet sites. He is the author of Implosion – An Economic Thriller about War, Environmental Destruction and Corporate Greed – fiction based on facts and on 30 years of World Bank experience around the globe. He is also a co-author of The World Order and Revolution! – Essays from the Resistance.