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okay three I
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welcome to Sputnik orbiting the world
with me George Galloway and me gri short
of predictions of Russian soldiers with
snow on their boots in Oxford Street
you'd think we were entering a wintry
phase of a new Cold War British
politicians and their media Echo chamber
are in overdrive trying to hang Russia
out to dry first it was Riot then
gay rights now is the Russian response
to the Western provocation in the
Ukraine although as the name suggest the
G20 consist of more than the US and its
usual satellites you would have thought
that China India Brazil South Africa
Indonesia turkey which together count
for half the world's population hadn't
shown up in Brisbane last week all the
news was about the supposed Shir
fronting of President Putin the aggro
came from men while one woman with white
faces but their B boots were a little
threadbear teetering around bankruptcy
as most of them are but what's it all
about really why would the citizens of
austerity Europe and the USA want to
pick a fight with Russia and her friends
helping us answer this riddle wrapped in
a mystery inside an enigma is Alexander
necrosoft former Kremlin adviser but
first let's take a look at what the
people in the streets had to say about
Russia do they feel threatened by the
Russian can bear yes I do think they're
bad um I'm a gay person anyway so um
just think it's really bad what they're
doing to people like that and the whole
Ukraine thing is a bit what pardon um
the whole laws on homosexuality I don't
find should
be like something that's in forc in
everyday life now so um yeah just think
they're a bit behind and backwards at
the moment there's a lot of violence or
and the media here there's portrayed a
lot of violence against homosexuals in
Russia and
uh it being made illegal although I'm
not sure if that's correct in my
understanding but um and that's
something in when you live in quite a
liberal westernized um Society kind of
doesn't feel right no I'm ex-military
and I don't really see it as
a a threat it's a it's a big Power if it
gets back in power it will be a big
power but uh uh at the moment no the way
Putin is thinking it's something like
communist era yeah like you know can you
explain their way of thinking yeah like
he's doing what want because he want all
the gas and the and the petrol and
everything and the big poers from West
um west countries they don't have enough
um courage to go to him right there you
see look you've done too much already I
think America will have another war with
they want the Cold War back but it's
about arms it's about selling arms to
different
countries Alexander a mixed bag of
popular uh reactions and it's hardly
surprising I've got the daily mail from
earlier this week almost a spoof
headline it says Russians spy on UK
families via their webcams enough to
chill the bone of every parent in the
land that
Boris with snow on his boots is watching
their children in their bedrooms are
watching their kids brushing their teeth
this is becoming almost hysterical isn't
it well it is hysterical I think it's
been hysterical since last November uh
in when when the events started to
unravel in Ukraine I think that uh what
we are witnessing here is Soviet style
propaganda strangely enough against
Russia against Russia so it turns
against Russia and the interesting thing
is everyone is avoiding the main point
what happened in February when a
legitimate government was overthrown
basically in an armed CP yes by violence
and that is where the whole thing
started but nobody remembers that for
some reason in the western media it's
always the events move forwards and we
talk about Crimea only as if Crimea was
something that uh Putin decided guys
let's take over Crimea there was nothing
like that first of all what they don't
understand these hex I mean is that
Putin reflects what the Russian people
want he's not Cameron or Obama who
decide let's go into Libya or let's go
into Iraq or let's go I don't know where
else they're going to go Syria probably
and uh they are there already well
they're probably going to go in big time
and the point here is that it's always
Putin did that Putin did this and he
decided and so on and this I think is a
very important point that is being
missed it's the people of Crimea who
decided to go back to Russia it's not
that Putin said to them to come back not
quite now we'll come in a minute to that
very last point that the former military
man in your Vox pops uh said that it's
it's about selling arms it's about
creating uh tension uh in the in the
world for political and uh even uh
military industrial uh reasons what come
to that you say the hacks have forgotten
that well for yeah I mean it isn't true
they haven't these are educated fellows
uh they are in many cases Highly
Educated people uh they know very well
the sequence of events it's willful
Distortion of the truth I mean Russians
spy on UK families via their
webcams I mean why wasn't that thrown
out as an April Fool joke instead of
being on the front page of almost the
biggest selling newspaper in the country
you know what they forgot to mention
that this website this Russian website
actually revealed these clips from what
120 countries Russia sorry Britain is
just a small part of it and these are
all webcams sort of private ones which
are showing rooms and baby uh webcams
and so on which make no sense of course
the moment you read the article you
realize it's the headline the people who
are spying on all UK families is the
British government
gchq my six Edward Snowden told us all
about it read all about it I mean that
headline should have said British
Authority spy on UK families via their
mobile phone their internet their webcam
and everything else probably got
somebody up your chimney not forgetting
the Americans by the way who are spying
after everyone on everyone even on
Angela merel now here's the point why
did all these uh the the the anglosaxon
governments we can understand the famous
five uh of the former settler States
plus Britain uh the that Unity is always
why does
angeler tamely go along behind Barack
Obama's policy when it is deeply
damaging to the German economy which is
already now moving into slump and when
the Americans were tapping her own
personal
telephone well I think it's a bigger
game here first of all we must
understand that America is trying to
drive a wedge between Russia and Europe
this has got a political and Commercial
side to it th this is the whole game of
this uh uh crisis in in Ukraine it needs
to cut Russia off and flood the European
markets with its own Goods because it's
sinking America is bankrupt let's face
it it's the only way it can save itself
is if it takes over Europe with through
that dodgy Free Trade Agreement which is
trying to impose on them with Merkel now
here is a difficult one because um her
own party is actually up in arms against
her not all of them but some of them and
I think she's playing a dangerous game
here because the German economy is The
Biggest Loser of them all if if if they
cut off Russia completely so I don't
really it's like a death wish
you know she has a death wish I think
because I maybe they found something
compromising on her telephone well
that's that something I thought about as
well and you know why I thought about
this remember when she went to to the
United States before that when she met
Obama before that she was a bit you know
she was a bit restrained she was sort of
saying no no we should find the way
around it there were
actually uh negotiations going on
between Germany uh Russia and CR behind
the scenes and um so it she she was in a
different and then suddenly after that
visit and meeting Obama she changed
completely now I was thinking at the
time it's my my my my suspicions but
maybe you know they found something in
her past when she was living in gdr that
that they could use against because I I
couldn't understand the transformation
and the logic not that stupid another
way yeah what's about the Russian people
themselves the population are they aware
of this whole Cold War rhetoric that's
being
resurrected um well here in the west how
how is it how is it being received there
well I've been watching the Russian
websites and and in particular Russian
bloggers you know who respond
immediately to everything and they will
respond to that story as well and I can
tell you that yes of course they realize
the situation and they realize the
massive massive propaganda that's going
in the western press in the western
world uh politic politicians as well but
the point is and this is my opinion
personal opinion I don't think that the
Cold War has actually gone had actually
gone the reason being if if it did NATO
would not have existed but once NATO
started to move eastwards that meant the
Cold War in a in a different type in a
different way I'm not saying it's the
same cold war but it started to sort of
get back on the cards again and when
they went into Ukraine and they did go
into Ukraine let's let's let's face it
that was basically the beginning of the
Cold War again Russia could not allow
NATO to be in Ukraine no of course it's
as simple as that Putin had no choice
but to respond I think the West
misjudged Russia's reaction I think they
thought they could swallow them like the
baltics so Bulgaria Romania and you know
pay nothing for it just take it over and
it didn't work and then they were
absolutely astonished with Crimea they
did not realize that this could happen
and what they also didn't understand is
that when they were saying but yes but
Putin sent sent his troops there you
know to to to take over
Crimea the troops were there already an
agreement with Ukraine
25,000 soldiers and officers at the
naval base in sast and that base is the
pride of Russia and the guys I you know
I know these people these are real real
Patriots of Russia they were always
saying you know crime has always been
Russian you know 80% well 70 something
per are Russian ethnic Russians and that
was not Putin sending troops that were
the troops and the Russians there
deciding to take it back to Russia
Alexander it's been a pleasure talking
to you on board the Sputnik coming up
after the break we'll up the temperature
and go Latino don't miss
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it welcome back to Sputnik at the end of
this month in the prestigious
headquarters of the TU in London a
galaxy of star speakers yes including
yours truly will gather for a conference
on Latin America Prime among this August
lineup will Dr ala gavara she's the
daughter of CH gavara a man whose star
shines even brighter in Argentina than
lonel Messi even though Chay hasn't been
around to score a goal for 47 years one
of the conference organizers is Matt
wilgis of the Venezuela solidarity
campaign and we're glad to welcome him
on board the Sputnik Matt we'll talk
about Venezuela in a minute but tell us
about this Latin America conference
what's the range of subjects speaker
organizers and how do people even at
this late hour get to it thanks George
um the Latin America conference is on
Saturday November 29th at Tu Congress
house in central London you can register
or get the program at ww. Latin Amica
2014.org do.uk in terms of the agenda of
the day there's over 25 different
workshops covering all aspects of Latin
America country specific workshops on
Cuba Colombia Venezuela which I'm
involved in Ecuador Nicaragua Bolivian
so on but also topics on themes so
looking at things like the role of Latin
americ providing solidarity to the
Palestinians and working for peace in
the world did world of free education
and the student movements in Latin
America Shay G's daughter ala G is like
the keynote speaker of the conference
this year and she's speaking in um I
think four different sessions one um a
sort of a plenary session to the whole
conference two um organized by the Cuba
solidarity campaign one I think with
your good s and then she's also
introducing a film that she made about
the late who go chz in another session
as well which um I'll be introducing
alongside her well that allows us to
segue into Venezuela it's two years ago
uh you and I were on the streets
campaigning in Chavez last uh Victory
and you know this one scene that we
witnessed that stays in my mind so
strongly when we were walking the
streets of kakas there was this argument
between this elderly lady and a young
school student and they were quite loud
L about it and it turns out that she was
angry at the young boy for calling her a
capitalista amazing only in Venezuela
only in Venezuela I thought I think he
called her out cuz she had a nice quot
on her was quite quite an unfair uh
allegation but the one I remember is as
we stood in fact I I shed a tear uh this
large group of very poor women uh moving
along the street joyously singing Chavez
Corazon Del Pueblo the heart of the
people it was simply Unforgettable visit
and he seemed like a a bull yeah uh that
day in the rain in the rain uh and yet
he was taken from us so uh so swiftly
how's the country coped with the loss of
President Chavez well I think um the
immediate after after of President
Chavez's death obviously saw a great
outpour of grief and sympathy and you
know literally hundreds of thousands of
people on the streets they had to keep
the cofin open for days and days on end
so everyone could go and pay their
respects but I think what is concerning
is that people who opposed to the sort
of elected government in Venezuela and
the chavista project if you like have
seen the death of shavis as an
opportunity to um opportunity to
destabilize and undermine the Revolution
and in their eyes ultimately overthrow
the success to Shas The elected former
Trade union leader and foreign minister
Nicholas Maduro and so in the last year
basically since last year and a half
maduro's been elected and since January
we've seen different attempts from the
sort of extreme elements of the right
bring opposition in Venezuela to um
undermine and destabilize the elected
government and I think we should also
remember um on a show like this that the
US role in supporting and funding to the
tunes of millions of dollars those
extreme ring elements in Venezuela so as
a campaign we've um T sort of titled
what's going on this after Chavez The
Empire Strikes Back and um so there's
number of concerning elements of the
situation at the moment for people who
support democracy and social progress in
Venezuela well the United States
supports democracy so much they're ready
to spend billions to overthrow the
product of it they have done in the
Ukraine successfully uh and they are
trying so far unsuccessfully to do the
same in Venezuela what about the local
uh actors uh there appears now I'm sorry
to say to be the development of a kind
of Death Squad uh potential I lived
through the death squads in El Salvador
and in Nicaragua and I saw for myself
with my own eyes some of their Grizzly
handiwork uh a very young uh chavista
parliamentarian was murdered
horrifically with his partner at home
uh tell us about that um well recently
on the 1st of October there was a murder
of um Roberto Sarah who was the youngest
member of the National Assembly in
Venezuela um a young lawyer and the
leader of the youth wing of the
Socialist Party which is the governing
main political party in the parliament
in Venezuela to which the president
belongs and um he was found murdered
alongside his assistant in his home um
and obviously there's police
investigations and so on criminal
proceedings are ongoing but the um
former president of Colombia anesto
sampa who isn't a man of the left um but
is now in a leading figure in unau which
is in a simplistic ways a bit like the
Latin American European union he said
that it showed a worrying infiltration
of Colombian paramilitarism into
Venezuela and obviously farri
paramilitaries in Colombia have been a
concern to supporters of democracy and
the left for a long time um but also
this you know this tragedy comes within
a
historical context of the elements of
the Venezuelan opposition consistently
trying to do things outside the sort of
electoral game basically because they
keep losing elections and they've lost
two elections national elections it
should be remembered since Chavez died
so if they were banking on Chavis dying
to mean they would come back immediately
to power the Electoral route didn't
provide that so some elements obviously
the opposition in Venezuela are looking
at all sorts of different things so
earlier in the year they we had the
Lasser movement which I think you
covered on on this very program um which
was a sort of serious of violent Street
actions aimed at destabilizing the
situation in Venezuela but that sort of
died out they've died out now but um you
know a number of innocent people lost
their lives as a result of that and the
stated aim of that campaign political
aim was the outing of the Constitutional
elected government before the end of its
term so um we need to be very Vigilant
about the situation in Venezuela and CH
Vigilant I think so I think um a lot of
people obvious the situation you get a
lot of media misrepresentation here in
Britain about it but the situation early
in the year all things considered you
know at the end of that President Mador
still had much higher approval ratings
than the
opposition the um country sort of got
back to normal and you know continues to
try and announce a whole wave of new
programs and social progress in a number
of issues um so I think you know weeking
personally I've been immensely impressed
with President maduro's leadership in
what obviously was shavis dying first
then this violent campaign and now
things like this assassination is not an
easy time no no no uh he's been uh
towering uh presence uh in the last year
and a half Lally I'm wondering yes
literally uh I'm wondering uh how United
the left is in Venezuela one hears or
reads stories admittedly in hostile
newspapers and I don't read Spanish so I
don't really get the other side uh I'm
I'm wondering we we hear these stories
about uh Pro Chavez revolutionary people
sort of taking the Law into their own
hands and not being happy with this or
that aspect of the new government tell
us about that I think um you're right
there people obviously who have a
interest in opposing the Revolution and
the government exaggerate divisions in
Venezuela on the left but equally
Venezuela isn't um you know it's it's a
new sort of former 21st century
socialism in its own is which is
evolving so it isn't um a one party
State and within the left although
nearly everyone is in the united
Socialist Party has brought together
over 40 organizations there are other
organizations like the Communist Party
of Venezuela and some the PPT and others
that support the government that aren't
in that so there will be disagreements
on a political level between those
parties for example um but at the
Congress of the governing party which
was quite recently I the reports I read
in Spanish the majority of them like the
main people who organized their sort of
opposition press conference saying they
were sort of opposed to madur but was
Chev stad weren't even delegates to the
conference um they oriz a sort of you
know I think a very small group of
people um and also I think we have to be
very wary of a lot of these media
stories about people taking the Law into
their own hands unless we know the
specifics of the case um but I think in
terms
of the discussions going on since Chavez
and shave it's also important to
understand that and going back to the
conference that we discussed that
there's also a regional Unity emerging
in Latin America man to left which
strengthens mad's hand in that situ yes
it does and uh and indeed even unites uh
people who are not all entirely of the
of the left but who could be described
as patriotic uh Latin Americans tell us
finally about the venez Venezuela
solidarity campaign how do people join
it what does it do so um the Venezuela
solidarity campaign next year will be um
celebrating our 10th anniversary I think
George is doing one of these events in
February I don't know if he knows that
yet but um we' be having a season of
events to celebrate our 10y year
anniversary um if people want more
information or to join they can go to
ww. Venezuela solidarity. co.uk we've
got a wide spectrum of support um we
work closely with a group of people in
Parliament we've had backing from the
Tec and most of the Trade union movement
and um we see our AIMS in a lobbying
sensus to Lobby that the British
government doesn't follow the hostility
of the US Administration towards
Venezuela which is very real and the
threat of us sanctions is not just on
the table but it's slowly being rolled
out now as Obama reacts to the
Republicans going to a senate and so on
um but also to tell the truth about
Venezuela and to present a picture that
we regard as a more real picture of
Venezuela and you see on the media a
picture of you know mentions the gains
in health and education and poverty
reduction and so on which isn't to say
there isn't problems in any country of
course um but it doesn't give you know
gives a counter to the Relentless
negative coverage that sadly we've seen
so much of the media fairness in the
British media I saw a pig flying by Matt
wilgis thanks for joining us on board
the
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Sputnik and now it's your turn to tell
us what you think through the portals of
social media what's rattling Guri well
when we tweeted uh the daily mail's
headline uh of Russian spying on our
activities in and out of the house we
received an such a funny response so
much funny responses to it Alistair
McIntyre says well it must be right it's
in a daily fail and Rachel devoy
responds well when the US and UK spy
it's for our own good but when Russia
spy it's bad give me a break it's not
even true I mean the idea that Russia
with the all its many problems is over
here looking at people in Milton Kings
what they're doing in their kitchen but
but as you said it should have been on
April 1 as an April fool joke yeah but a
lot of fools fall for it and there are
millions of fools read The Daily Mail or
the daily fail as she called it on
Venezuela will commandante Chavez Legacy
survive J Brand answers he changed the
world so how could he' not well that's
no guarantee because the world can
change and change back and change again
two steps forward one step back let's
hope it's only one step back well that's
it that we have for this week which
means that's the end end of the show
stay in touch with us on Twitter at rtor
Sputnik and on Facebook on Sputnik on
Russia today it's goodbye from me G and
from me George Galloway it's been
marvelous
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