Guest: Elijah Magnier. We discuss the uprising and protests across Iraq that turned violent this week, with over a hundred deaths and thousands of injuries.
Continue reading “Ep 127 Iraq Protests, US-Iran War, Regime Change feat Elijah Magnier”
Guest: Kyle Anzalone. Escalation of the conflict with Iran. Tucker Carlson’s major pushback against John Bolton and others urging Trump to provoke or start a hot war with Iran. Iran’s retaliatory “maximum pressure” campaign against the United States. The downing of an American drone over the Persian Gulf and Trump’s last minute stand down on missile strikes. Increasingly sophisticated strikes on Saudi Arabia by the Houthis.
Guest: Elijah Magnier. According to Elijah’s analysis, the recent sabotage attacks in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia were a warning from Iran to the US and allies in the region about what kinds of retaliation would occur if escalation continues and an attack on Iran is carried out. We also talk about his recent reporting about the prospects for a summer war in Lebanon and the wider region.
Dr. Neda Bolourchi joins us for a discussion of several major issues around Iran — involvement in Syria, the complicated alliance with Russia and their decentralized power structure. We also focus on the Green Revolution, the MEK and especially the misplaced expectations from some factions in the American foreign policy establishment that Iran’s people, especially their minority communities, will bring about the regime change that their adversaries desire.
Scott Horton joins us from Texas to talk about the withdrawal of troops from Syria and Afghanistan. Scott and Joanne offer some cautiously optimistic analysis on Trump’s latest actions on war and foreign policy and how he could use a “Horton’s Rule” strategy to his advantage, outflanking Left and Right opponents with detente and de-escalation. Is there an “only Nixon could go to China” opportunity for Trump and will he deliver on it?
We also discuss the dilemma that Establishment Democrats’ have created for themselves as they assume a twisted political opposition to scaling down wars and now routinely provide unquestioning fealty to the national security state. Lastly, we review William Atkin’s dissenting farewell memo to NBC and the media’s passive acceptance and cheerleading of perpetual war.
Middle East expert Joshua Landis returns to the show to discuss the recent summit in Istanbul, Europe’s move to join the Astana process, the war in Syria, the Khashoggi Affair and the forces aligning against the current US foreign policy in the MidEast.
Continue reading “Ep 76 Istanbul Summit: Europe Joins Astana Process feat Joshua Landis”
Syrian analyst Ehsani returns to the show to talk about the latest developments in the Syria, with a focus on the Idlib deal, Turkey’s role in the war, perspectives from Syrians, and the prospects for recovery.
Continue reading “Ep 72 Syria: Idlib Deal & Outlook feat Ehsani”
Journalist and analyst Pepe Escobar, speaks to us from Bangkok about the new Great Game in Eurasia and why the critical military and geopolitical situation requires that the US resume relations with Russia despite the massive forces working against that.
Escobar is the correspondent-at-large for Asia Times and a frequent contributor to websites, TV and radio shows ranging from the US to East Asia. Born in Brazil, he’s been a foreign correspondent since 1985, and has lived in London, Paris, Milan, Los Angeles, Washington, Bangkok and Hong Kong. FOLLOW Pepe Escobar on Facebook and find his work at Asia Times.
We are independent media and we rely on your contributions. Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire Donations: aroundtheempire.com
FOLLOW @aroundtheempire. Follow Dan & Joanne: @USEmpireShow, @joanneleon. SUBSCRIBE/FOLLOW us on iTunes, YouTube, Facebook.
Recorded on July 26, 2018. Music by Fluorescent Grey.
Reference Links:
Dan and Joanne talk with Jim Kavanagh about the summit between American President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki and the anticipated attempt to strike a MidEast grand bargain.
Jim is editor and writer at The Polemicist. His work is also published at CounterPunch, Greanville Post and he’s a frequent guest on the Loud and Clear radio show. Follow Jim at @ThePolemicist_ . Find his work at polemicist.net.
We are independent media and we rely on your contributions. Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire Donations: aroundtheempire.com
FOLLOW @aroundtheempire. Follow Dan & Joanne: @USEmpireShow, @joanneleon. SUBSCRIBE/FOLLOW us on iTunes, YouTube, Facebook.
Recorded on July 12, 2018. Music by Fluorescent Grey.
Reference Links:
Elijah Magnier returns to the show to talk about politics in post-ISIS Iraq, the results of the recent election, and the mission to select a new prime minister and cabinet. Elijah and Joanne also talk about the latest developments in Syria as the battle for the southwest Syria begins.
Elijah is a veteran war correspondent, a terrorism/counterterrorism analyst specializing in the Europe and the Middle East, especially Lebanon, Iraq, Syria, Sudan and Libya. He recently left Iraq and is speaking to us today from Lebanon.
Follow Elijah at @ejmalrai and find his work at ejmagnier.com
We are independent media and we rely on your contributions. Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire Donations: aroundtheempire.com
Find all of our work at our website aroundtheempire.com
Follow @aroundtheempire. Follow Dan & Joanne: @USEmpireShow, @joanneleon
Please subscribe/follow us on iTunes, YouTube, Facebook.
Recorded on May 31, 2018. Music by Fluorescent Grey.
Reference Links:
In this bonus episode (a bonus episode for patrons, 30 minute preview free to the public), Dan and Joanne talk about the growing conflict with Iran, the impact of Trump’s withdrawal from the Iran deal and the severe escalation in the Syrian war that began just hours after that withdrawal.
We are independent media and we rely on your contributions.
Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire Donations: aroundtheempire.com
Find all of our work at our website aroundtheempire.com
Follow @aroundtheempire
Follow Dan & Joanne: @USEmpireShow, @joanneleon
Please subscribe/follow us on iTunes, YouTube, Facebook.
Recorded on May 11, 2018. Music by Fluorescent Grey.
Reference Links:
Time for Europe to Join the Resistance, Spiegel, by Klaus Brinkbäumer
We hold a roundtable discussion with Joanne Leon, Kyle Anzalone and Will Porter about French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to the White House and Congress where he presented a prodigious plan for the Middle East that includes a harsher set of terms for the Iran deal, containment of Iran and Western dominance in the Middle East.
Kyle Anzalone is the host of the Foreign Policy Focus podcast and the editor-in-chief of ImmersionNews.com. He also writes the Daily News Roundup at Libertarian Institute.
Will Porter is a freelance journalist with a focus on US foreign policy and conflicts abroad. His work can be found at the Libertarian Institute, Antiwar.com and Consortium News
Support Kyle at https://www.patreon.com/ForeignPolicyFocus. Support Will at patreon.com/WKPJournalist.
We are independent media and we rely on your contributions. Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire Donations: aroundtheempire.com
Follow @aroundtheempire. Follow Dan & Joanne: @USEmpireShow, @joanneleon
Please subscribe/follow us on iTunes, YouTube, Facebook.
Recorded on April 28, 2018. Music by Fluorescent Grey.
Joanne talks with Lt. Col. Daniel L. Davis, USA, Ret.about his recent article, “President Trump is right: Withdrawing from Syria strengthens US security,” and about the current precarious situation where Trump has changed his mind and is signalling an imminent attack on Syria and Russia, using an alleged chemical weapons attack in Ghouta as justification.
Col. Davis served for 21 years, including four combat deployments. He retired from the Army in 2015 and is now a Foreign Policy/Defense Analyst and a senior fellow for Defense Priorities. His areas of expertise are American foreign policy, Middle East policy, Asia policy, grand strategy, international relations, international security, and counterinsurgency.
In 2012, he wrote a classified whistleblower report for Congress about the war in Afghanistan and released an unclassified version to the public. Col Davis regularly appears on news shows and is published in national and international publications.
Follow Col. Davis on Twitter at @DanielLDavis1
We are independent media and we rely on your contributions.
Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire Donations: aroundtheempire.com
Find all of our work at our website aroundtheempire.com
Follow @aroundtheempire
Follow Dan & Joanne: @USEmpireShow, @joanneleon
Please subscribe/follow us on iTunes, YouTube, Facebook.
Recorded on April 11, 2018. Music by Fluorescent Grey.
Reference Links:
Joanne talks with veteran war correspondent Elijah Magnier, from Damascus, about recent developments in Syria and his recent three-part article about the big picture and power players in the Syrian war. We also talk about the new crowd-funded book that he is writing on the history of Hezbollah.
Elijah is a journalist and a senior political risk analyst with over 32 years experience covering Europe and the Middle East.
Follow Elijah at @ejmalrai and find his work (in multiple languages) at ejmagnier.com
We are independent media and we rely on your contributions.
Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire Donations: aroundtheempire.com
Find all of our work at our website aroundtheempire.com
Follow @aroundtheempire
Follow Dan & Joanne: @USEmpireShow, @joanneleon
Please subscribe/follow us on iTunes, YouTube, Facebook.
Recorded on April 2, 2018. Music by Fluorescent Grey.
Reference Links:
Joanne talks with economist and writer Tom Luongo about Trump’s cabinet shuffle and the possibility that it is part of a Middle East grand bargain, as Alastair Crooke recently wrote about in the online journal, Strategic Culture.
Tom is former research chemist and staunch libertarian, Tom currently publishes his blog, Gold Goats ‘n Guns along with a monthly investment newsletter focused on geopolitics, commodities and cryptocurrencies. He is a regular contributor at Russia Insider and Seeking Alpha. His work is also featured regularly on sites like Zerohedge, Lewrockwell.com and Investing.com.
We are independent media and we rely on your contributions.
Patreon: patreon.com/aroundtheempire Donations: aroundtheempire.com
Follow Tom Luongo @TFL1728. Find his work on YouTube and at Steemit.com/@goldgoatsnguns.
Find all of our work at our website aroundtheempire.com
Follow @aroundtheempire. Follow Dan & Joanne: @USEmpireShow, @joanneleon
Please subscribe/follow us on iTunes, YouTube, Facebook.
Recorded on March 27, 2018. Music by Fluorescent Grey.
Reference Links:
