Around The Empire

Guest: Mohamed Elmaazi. We talk about the Assange extradition hearings that resumed this month in London. Mohamed gives us the highlights of the first week's proceedings with various witnesses and new charges against Assange. He has provided continuous coverage of this case and he is able to give us a sense of what it's like on the ground in London reporting on these hearings now being conducted with Covid19 special arrangements.

Mohamed Elmaazi is a journalist with experience in human rights law, with degrees from American University in Cairo and SOAS. He writes for Sputnik News, he publishes The Interregnum blog and he has been a contributor to Open Democracy, The Canary, the Grayzone and The Real News Network and he publishes.

FOLLOW Mohamed on Twitter at @MElmaazi. Find his writing at Sputnik News, The Canary and visit his blog The Interregnum

Around the Empire is listener supported, independent media. Pitch in at Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire or paypal.me/aroundtheempirepod. Find all links at aroundtheempire.com.

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Recorded on September 12, 2020. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

1. Absolutely Ludicrous': Diplomat Reacts to Decision in Assange Case Disallowing Witness Summaries, Mohamed Elmaazi
2. Assange Hearing: Refusal to Grant an Adjournment is a 'Gross Violation', Says WikiLeaks Chief, Mohamed Elmaazi
3. EXCLUSIVE: 'A Danger for Justice' - Assange Defence Expert Explains How US Conspiracy Trials Work, Mohamed Elmaazi
4. There's Strong Evidence that Assange's Prosecution is 'Politically Motivated', Defence Expert Says, Mohamed Elmaazi
5. Charges Against Julian Assange Are 'Unconstitutional' And Threaten Press Freedom, Expert Tells Court, Mohamed Elmaazi
6. Espionage Charges Against Assange 'An Abuse of the Criminal Law Enforcement Power': Defence Expert, Mohamed Elmaazi
7. Journalism On Trial: The UK & Press Freedom, Redfish
8. The War on Journalism: The Case of Julian Assange, Juan Passarelli

Guest: Bryan MacDonald. We talk about some of the history and the current state of affairs in Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko and his opposition, the recent elections and subsequent protests and whether or not this is a color revolution. Bryan has been to Belarus many times understands the politics in Russia and Eastern Europe. There's a bonus question for patrons about the alleged poisoning of Alexei Navalny and the information leaked by Lukashenko about that affair. I also add some recent updates on Navalny who posted on Instagram today after several weeks in a medically induced coma. He said that he plans to return to Russia.

Bryan MacDonald is an Irish journalist based in Russia. He has written for RT since 2014. Before moving to Russia, Bryan worked for The Irish Independent, the Evening Herald, Ireland on Sunday, and The Irish Daily Mail. Follow him on Twitter @27khv

FOLLOW Bryan on Twitter @27khv and find his work at RT.

Around the Empire is listener supported, independent media. Pitch in at Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire or paypal.me/aroundtheempirepod. Find all links at aroundtheempire.com.

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Recorded on September 6,, 2020. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

1. Tens of thousands join Belarus march against Lukashenko, AFP
2. Lukashenko Says 'Intercepted Call' Shows Germany 'Falsified' Navalny Poisoning Claims, Moscow Times
3. Johnson's Russia List
4. RT Bradley Blankenship Aug 12: The Belarusian protests are not a 'color revolution' – they're the result of Lukashenko repeating Soviet mistakes
5. Alexei Navalny Releases Photo From Hospital Bed After Nerve Agent Poisoning, NPR

Guest: Peter Lee. We discussed some of the background story on Xinjiang, a province and autonomous region in the northwest of China that borders on Mongolia, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India and is part of the historical Silk Road. We also talked about the Uyghurs, the current situation in Xinjiang, the media coverage and the escalating tensions between the US and China. In a bonus question for patrons (Ep 181EXTRA Taiwan and Top Asia-Related Issues), I asked Peter Which Asia-related issues he thinks are most pressing, worrying or important to focus on right now.

Peter has decades of experience in East Asia both as a businessman and as a writer. He produces Peter Lee's China Threat Report and has been published at Asia Times, CounterPunch at his own blog, China Matters.

FOLLOW @chinahand. SUBSCRIBE to Peter Lee's China Threat Report.

Around the Empire is listener supported, independent media. Pitch in at Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire or paypal.me/aroundtheempirepod. Find all links at aroundtheempire.com.

SUBSCRIBE on YouTube. FOLLOW @aroundtheempire and @joanneleon. SUBSCRIBE/FOLLOW on iTunes, iHeart, Spotify, Google Play, Facebook or on your preferred podcast app.

Recorded on September 2, 2020. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

1. Peter Lee's China Threat Report: The Xinjiang Series No. 1: The Crisis of Governance
2. Peter Lee's China Threat Report: Assessing the Timetable for Taiwan Independence and World War III
3. Peter Lee's blog archive on Uyghurs
4. Scott Horton interview with Andrew Bacevich: Ep. 5009 – Andrew Bacevich on Soros and Koch Teaming Up to End the Wars – 7/3/2019
5. ATE Episode 14: The Future of China in the Age of Trump feat. Peter Lee (Chinahand)
6. ATE Episode 61: Escalation With China feat Peter Lee

Guest: Isa Blumi. We talk about the current state of affairs in the gulf states and the region during the economic crisis and lockdowns for Covid19, the UAE-Israel deal, the evolution of situation in the Middle East, the war Yemen and the rivalry between Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar and Turkey. We discuss the increasing influence of China in the region and we also talk about media coverage and how it is heavily influenced by various sources of funding.

There is a bonus question for patrons at the end of the interview on China's increasing influence in the Middle East and whether they will be a savior for the Global South. Episode 180EXTRA Will China be the Savior of the Global South?

Dr. Isa Blumi is an historian, an author and Professor of Global History, Islamic World, Ottoman Empire, Yemen, Albania. His very prescient book, titled Destroying Yemen: What Chaos in Arabia Tells Us about the World tells the story of the wars in Yemen but also "ultimately tells an even larger story of today's political economy of global capitalism, development, and the war on terror as disparate actors intersect in Arabia."

FOLLOW Isa Blumi @IsaBlumi and find his latest book at UCPress.edu.

Around the Empire is listener supported, independent media. Pitch in at Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire or paypal.me/aroundtheempirepod. Find all links at aroundtheempire.com.

SUBSCRIBE on YouTube. FOLLOW @aroundtheempire and @joanneleon. SUBSCRIBE/FOLLOW on iTunes, iHeart, Spotify, Google Play, Facebook or on your preferred podcast app.

Recorded on August 30, 2020. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

1. ATE Ep 128 Will the Saudi Kingdom Survive Their War on Yemen? feat Isa Blumi
2. ATE Ep 64 Yemen War Big Picture & Media Narrative feat Isa Blumi
3. ATE Ep 55 Imperial War, Gulf State Rivalry, Resources and Resistance in Yemen feat Isa Blumi

Guest: Carl Zha. We did a follow up discussion about the Hong Kong protests (which we had talked about last summer in Episode 119). Then we had a longer, broad ranging discussion on the rapid deterioration of US-China relations, a new Cold War, the power structure in China, protectionism, globalism, Silicon Valley, the military-intelligence complex and more. There's a bonus question for patrons about whether we are now in a Cold War with China, the prospect of a hot war between US and China and if that did happen, what would the war look like. Episode 179EXTRA War between US and China.

Carl Zha is an engineer, historian, podcaster, and a Caltech Alum. His podcast, Silk and Steel, is about China, US-China Great Power competition and the history of Empires, past and present.

FOLLOW @carlzha, SUBSCRIBE to his podcast Silk and Steel and listen to his previous podcast, Clash.

Around the Empire is listener supported, independent media. Pitch in at Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire or paypal.me/aroundtheempirepod. Find all links at aroundtheempire.com.

SUBSCRIBE on YouTube. FOLLOW @aroundtheempire and @joanneleon. SUBSCRIBE/FOLLOW on iTunes, iHeart, Spotify, Google Play, Facebook or on your preferred podcast app.

Recorded on August 27, 2020. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

1. Around the Empire Ep 119 Hong Kong Protests Reality feat Carl Zha
2. Silk and Steel podcast EP#71-Biking to Xinjiang with Jerry Grey

Guest: Ben Norton. We talk about the latest developments in Bolivia, life in Nicaragua, the new Cold War with Russia and China and we wrapped up with a discussion about big picture geopolitics.

Ben Norton is a journalist, writer, and filmmaker. He is the assistant editor of The Grayzone, and the producer of the Moderate Rebels podcast, which he co-hosts with editor Max Blumenthal.

FOLLOW @BenjaminNorton Find his work at The Grayzone and subscribe to his podcast Moderate Rebels.

Around the Empire is listener supported, independent media. Pitch in at Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire or paypal.me/aroundtheempirepod. Find all links at aroundtheempire.com.

SUBSCRIBE on YouTube. FOLLOW @aroundtheempire and @joanneleon. SUBSCRIBE/FOLLOW on iTunes, iHeart, Spotify, Google Play, Facebook or on your preferred podcast app.

Recorded on August 20, 2020. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

1. Around the Empire Ep 136 Coup in Bolivia feat Ben Norton

Guest: Doug Valentine. Doug talks about his latest book, "TDY" based on a story told to him by a veteran of the Vietnam war who was sent on a covert mission related to the CIA and military involvement in trafficking. There is also a bonus segment about how and why the CIA uses trafficking for funding of covert operations Ep 177EXTRA TDY and War Trafficking.

From the book description:

"This novel by Douglas Valentine, author of the nonfiction bestseller The CIA as Organized Crime, is based on a true story, one told to him by a Vietnam veteran, and barely, yet grippingly, fictionalized here.

"In early 1967, a bored, adventurous photojournalist on an Air Force base in Texas is offered a Temporary Duty (TDY) assignment somewhere overseas. The mission is steeped in secrecy, but Pete is promised a large bonus and hazardous duty pay. The mission that unfolds is terrifying beyond anything Pete ever imagined."

Here's what Oliver Stone said about the book: "I read it in suspense and found the last revelations after the mission even more disturbing."

Douglas Valentine is an author, investigator, journalist and poet. He's the author of many other books, including "The Phoenix Program: America's Use of Terror in Vietnam," and "The CIA as Organized Crime: How Illegal Operations Corrupt America and the World." He is well known for his extensive research and interviews of numerous CIA officers, former CIA director William Colby and others involved in the Phoenix Program. The Phoenix Program was a large operation that involved kidnapping, torture, and assassination. Its goal was the destruction of the Viet Cong insurgency, a political and paramilitary movement that worked against the United States and the US-backed South Vietnamese government during the Vietnam war.

FOLLOW Doug on Twitter @DougValentine77 Find his work at his website douglasvalentine.com

Around the Empire is listener supported, independent media. Pitch in at Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire or paypal.me/aroundtheempirepod. Find all links at aroundtheempire.com.

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Recorded on August 20, 2020. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Guest: Ehsani. We talk about the financial crisis that has been building for years and the structural problems in Lebanon's economy and banking system that has been in place since the 1990's. The Beirut explosion and widespread damage brought the broader crisis to a head and exposed how the system is broken. We also talk about the political issues, protests and external interference. There is a bonus question for patrons at the end of the interview on whether this is a push for regime change and which external forces are behind it.

Ehsani is a Syrian American, born in Lebanon and raised in Aleppo. He has a solid background in finance. Find his analysis and discussion on Twitter at @ehsani22. He has also written for the Syria Comment blog under the pseudonym, "Ehsani".

FOLLOW Ehsani on Twitter at @EHSANI22

Around the Empire is listener supported, independent media. Pitch in at Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire or paypal.me/aroundtheempirepod. Find all links at aroundtheempire.com.

SUBSCRIBE on YouTube. FOLLOW @aroundtheempire and @joanneleon. SUBSCRIBE/FOLLOW on iTunes, iHeart, Spotify, Google Play, Facebook or on your preferred podcast app.

Recorded on August 18, 2020. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

1. Beirut faces rising poverty after blast, Al Jazeera English
2. Lebanon's economy: Plundered by politics and banking elites | Counting the Cost, Al Jazeera English

Guest: Elijah Magnier. We talk about the August 4, 2020 explosion in the Beirut port, details of what happened, political implications, cui bono and more. Elijah has gathered information from Beirut and provided some of that information for the first time in this interview as an exclusive. There is also a bonus question for patrons, Ep 175EXTRA Beirut Explosion and Political Implications where we talk about the possibility of the faction aligned with Trump, Netanyahu and Salman wanting to escalate while they can in anticipation of Trump and Netanyahu being out of power in the near future.

FOLLOW Elijah on Twitter @ejmalrai. Find and support his work at ejmagnier.com. There is a "donate" button at the bottom of the page.

Around the Empire is listener supported, independent media. Pitch in at Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire or paypal.me/aroundtheempirepod. Find all links at aroundtheempire.com.

SUBSCRIBE on YouTube. FOLLOW @aroundtheempire and @joanneleon. SUBSCRIBE/FOLLOW on iTunes, iHeart, Spotify, Google Play, Facebook or on your preferred podcast app.

Recorded on August 6, 2020. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

1. US-ISRAEL MEETING: WHEN IS THE HEZBOLLAH RESPONSE EXPECTED?, Elijah Magnier (7/28/20)
2. Beirut blast: more than 100 dead and over 5,000 wounded in huge explosion, France24
3. Will the Beirut explosion lead to political change in Lebanon? | Inside Story, Al Jazeera English
4. Beirut has suffered a catastrophe that will live long in the memory – and the repeated betrayal of its citizens is a travesty, Robert Fisk
5. Around the Empire Ep 40 Lebanon Crisis feat. Sonia Mansour Robaey (12/13/17)

Guest: Tom Luongo. We talk about factional wars among the powers that be, the Ghislaine Maxwell and Epstein case, the Southern District of New York (SDNY) federal prosecutor's office and Brexit (meaning the larger battle between the EU and the US/UK). We attempt to analyze how these things are related and could provide a higher level understanding of some of the scandals and chaos we are witnessing in the run up to the 2020 election and Brexit and the chaos that has escalated to more extreme and public levels since the 2016 election. There is also a bonus episode for patrons (Ep 174BONUS Getting Started With Crypto & Gold) on getting started with investment in cryptocurrency and gold for those who might be considering alternative investments in periods of instability.

Tom Luongo is an analyst, writer and a former research chemist. His specialty is markets analysis informed by geopolitics. He is a libertarian and Austrian economist who publishes a blog Gold Goats 'n Guns and a monthly investment letter. He contributes at Newsmax Media and is published by and does commentary for many other media outlets.

Note: Tom and I are very different politically but we believe in finding common ground especially on war/foreign policy and also on some other very basic things. No doubt his listeners will be aggravated with me and mine with him to some extent but common ground is more important than ever and I also want to provide a variety of voices on this podcast. We already have too many echo chambers and hyperpartisanship, in my view, which are doing more harm than good.

Another note: I have to apologize for the audio quality in this interview. I think we both had some internet issues that caused some audio issues which I fixed as best I could. We had to stop and start a couple times. I edited a lot of the worst problems and hopefully it's fairly easy to listen to now despite the problems.

FOLLOW Tom at @TFL1728. Find his work at Gold, Goats 'n Guns Also find his work at Patreon, Youtube and DLive.

Around the Empire is listener supported, independent media. Pitch in at Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire or paypal.me/aroundtheempirepod. Find all links at aroundtheempire.com.

SUBSCRIBE on YouTube. FOLLOW @aroundtheempire and @joanneleon. SUBSCRIBE/FOLLOW on iTunes, iHeart, Spotify, Google Play, Facebook or on your preferred podcast app.

Recorded on July 8, 2020. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

1. Maxwell Didn't Kill Herself By Getting Arrested, Tom Luongo
2. Tom Luongo: Podcast Episode #42 – Ghislaine Maxwell, Trump and Why Brexit Hangs in the Balance
3. Whitney Webb's Epstein articles