Venezuela's Military Now Facing Food Shortages And Hyperinflation

Photo: This stash of Venezuelan Bolivares is worth a few dollars. Source: Reddit

Miami Herald: After killing of rebel cop, Maduro’s grip on Venezuela’s military may be loosening

The government of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, hated by much of the country's population and sanctioned by a growing number of countries, is facing problems keeping the police and military happy as food shortages and hyperinflation start to hit their barracks.

Recent meetings and internal documents of the Venezuelan armed forces point to concern in the Maduro regime as troops grow more demoralized and commanders report an increase in the number of insubordination cases and desertions.

In addition to the signs of unrest among the Army and National Guard units, the government also faces a tense relationship with the investigative police agency known by its initials in Spanish, CICPC, after the recent public execution of rebel policeman Oscar Perez, who was killed by security forces in an assault broadcast live through social media.

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WNU Editor: This is as bad as it gets .... Venezuelans ‘loot to eat’ amid economic tailspin (AP).

Tweets For Today

President Donald Trump’s first State of the Union address after a year in office https://t.co/bH5IvMBzTE

— Reuters Top News (@Reuters) January 31, 2018

Trump, in State of the Union, seeks full military funding, but how? https://t.co/3NNiWBHZqN pic.twitter.com/IYdUlMxmD3

— Defense News (@defense_news) January 31, 2018

President Juan Manuel Santos on Monday declared the suspension of the peace talks after three bomb attacks on police stations in Colombia killed seven officers and wounded dozens https://t.co/RWxWFkeoRJ

— AFP news agency (@AFP) January 30, 2018

Yemen PM 'holed up' as Aden palace surrounded https://t.co/qCqSpXcsWY

— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) January 30, 2018

Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga held a mock inauguration in front of thousands of supporters https://t.co/lntExdLrul pic.twitter.com/rJ7SHyAJxm

— AFP news agency (@AFP) January 30, 2018

hey guys, I think I figured out the secret to the Dalai Lama's serenity pic.twitter.com/XBDqqmsE6E

— Django Gold (@django) January 30, 2018

It's an astronomical trifecta on Wednesday: A blue moon, a supermoon and a lunar eclipse https://t.co/dacLeZ5a0E

— NYT Science (@NYTScience) January 30, 2018

The Fragile Peace Between India And Pakistan On The Kashmir Border Is Crumbling

BBC: Viewpoint: India and Pakistan up the ante on disputed border

The fragile peace along the de facto border dividing India and Pakistan in Kashmir is crumbling.

The Line of Control (LoC) is an un-demarcated 776km (482 mile) stretch of frontier that snakes across the mountains of the northern Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir.

About 200,000 Indian and Pakistani soldiers face each other here, with rifles, machine guns, mortars and artillery at the ready. It is the most intensively manned and militarised border in the world.

Skirmishes between soldiers and artillery duels were a regular feature of the LoC until it fell silent in 2003, when former Indian prime minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, and former president of Pakistan Pervez Musharraf agreed to an unwritten peace.

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Update: Nose to Nose: Ceasefire Between India and Pakistan on Verge of Unraveling (Sputnik)

WNU Editor: Border skirmishes are now a daily occurrence. It will not take much for these skirmishes to explode into an all-out conflict.

Picture Of The Day

President Donald Trump delivers his first State of the Union address. REUTERS/Win McNamee/Pool

WNU Editor: The above picture is from this photo-gallery .... State of the Union (Reuters).

Why Yemen's Civil War Is Far From Over

(Click on Image to Enlarge)

Nic Robertson, CNN: A clear view of enemy lines, but no end in sight to Yemen's war

Aden, Yemen (CNN)From atop al-Manara mountain, just east of the Yemeni capital Sanaa, it is possible to think that fighting here might be over soon.

The strategic high ground dominates surrounding Houthi territory below. A swift advance from here could dislodge the Iranian-backed rebels, either pushing them out of the capital or into meaningful peace talks.

But that view would overlook the complexities of Yemen's war, as well as the paucity of military hardware that we witnessed on the hours-long drive during our bone-shaking ascent up the 8,500-foot-high plateau.

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WNU Editor: While there are many countries directly involved in Yemen's civil war .... this is still conflict that is still deeply divided along tribal and sectarian lines.The above CNN report is a good analysis on what is happening in that country, and a must read for those who are following this conflict closely.

UAE-Backed Yemeni Separatists Have Taken Control Of The Southern Port City Of Aden

BBC: Yemen separatists capture most of Aden, residents say

Yemeni separatists have taken almost full control of the southern port city of Aden after days of fighting with government forces, residents say.

PM Ahmed bin Daghar and members of his cabinet are believed to be holed up inside the presidential palace in Aden.

There are reports of talks between the southern separatists and government forces, who were previously allies.

The fighting opens up a new front in Yemen, splitting the alliance against Houthi rebels in the north.

It has already led to the deaths of 40 people since Sunday, the Red Cross says.

The separatists are also reported to have also seized Aden's military bases.

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WNU Editor: The Saudi-backed Yemen government has .... for all intents and purposes .... fallen. This is (to put it bluntly) a huge set-back for the Saudi government, and its war against Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in the northern part of the country.

More News On Yemeni Separatists Taking Control Of The Southern Port City Of Aden

UAE-backed separatists celebrate victory in south Yemen -- Middle East Monitor
Yemen separatists capture Aden, government confined to palace: residents -- Reuters
Saudi-Backed Coalition in Yemen Upended in Deadly Factional Fighting -- New York Times
Yemen separatists capture Aden -- Daily Star
Yemen Separatists Seize Control of Aden -- VOA
Yemen Prime Minister Holed Up As Separatists Seize Most Of Key Southern City -- NPR
Southern Yemen separatists seize control of most of Aden -- UPI
UAE jet enables separatists to seize army base in Aden -- Al Jazeera
Aden crisis: alliances of convenience unravel across Yemen -- Saeed Kamali Dehghan, The Guardian
UAE accused of aiding overthrow of Yemen government in Aden -- Middle East Eye
Aden crisis: alliances of convenience unravel across Yemen -- Saeed Kamali Dehghan, The Guardian
Aden’s violence and restoring Yemen’s national consensus -- Abdel Aziz Aluwaisheg, Arab News
In Yemen, a Coalition Cracks -- Stratfor

Former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe Under Investigation On His Handling Of Clinton Emails

CNN: Washington Post: IG was investigating why McCabe appeared not to act on Weiner emails

Washington (CNN)An ongoing government review of the FBI's handling of the Hillary Clinton email investigation has focused on recently departed FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe's role near the end of the 2016 campaign, The Washington Post reported Tuesday.

The Justice Department's inspector general has been asking for months about the timing of the FBI's decisions about Clinton-related emails on the laptop of disgraced former New York Democratic Rep. Anthony Weiner, the estranged husband of Clinton aide Huma Abedin.

McCabe, then the second-ranking official at the FBI, "appeared not to act for about three weeks" when some of those emails were requested for examination, the Post reported, citing an undisclosed number of sources familiar with the matter.

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WNU Editor: I suspect that the Inspector General's report will be more damning than many expect .... FBI’s Wray makes clear McCabe’s retirement tied to IG’s Clinton report (NBC). More here .... Wray Letter Suggests McCabe Left Due to Upcoming IG Report (US News and World Report). This is not how you end an FBI career that spans years of service.

More News On Former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe Being Under Investigation

Internal Justice Department probe eyes McCabe’s role in final weeks of 2016 election -- Washington Post
WaPo: Justice IG focused on McCabe delay in examining Clinton emails on Weiner laptop -- The Hill
The DOJ is reportedly investigating whether Andrew McCabe deliberately slowed the FBI's Clinton email probe -- Business Insider
FBI Director Hints McCabe Exit Tied to Upcoming IG Report on Clinton Emails -- PJ Media

U.S. State of the Union 2018

Tonight's Designated Survivor Is U.S. Agriculture Sec. Sonny Perdue

The Hill: Agriculture chief Sonny Perdue is 'designated survivor' for Trump's State of the Union

Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue is the “designated survivor” for President Trump’s first State of the Union speech.

A White House spokesman confirmed to The Hill that Perdue will not be present for the address Tuesday night, instead spending it in a secure location.

For every State of the Union or presidential address to a joint session of Congress, a Cabinet member is chosen to sit out as a precaution for an incident such as an attack on the Capitol.

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WNU Editor: If everything goes wrong tonight .... where the nightmare scenario does happen .... his new job will be the worst job to have in the world.

Tonight's Designated Survivor Is U.S. Agriculture Sec. Sonny Perdue

Sonny Perdue is Trump's 'designated survivor' for State of the Union 2018 -- USA Today
Agriculture secretary named 'designated survivor' -- CNN
Sonny Perdue picked as designated survivor for the State of the Union -- ABC News
What is a 'designated survivor'? Sonny Perdue's State of the Union role explained -- FOX News

Russia's Director of Foreign Intelligence Was In The U.S. Last Week (Even Though He Is Under U.S. Sanctions)

Russian Foreign Intelligence Service chief Sergei Naryshkin. © Alexei Nikolsky/Russian Presidential Press and Information Office/TASS

TASS: Russian intelligence chief visits US to discuss war on terror — ambassador

The director of Russia’s foreign intelligence has visited the United States for consultations with US counterparts

MOSCOW, January 30. /TASS/. The director of Russia’s foreign intelligence SVR, Sergey Naryshkin, has visited the United States for consultations with US counterparts on the struggle against terrorism, Russian ambassador in Washington Anatoly Antonov said on the 60 Minutes show of the Rossiya-1 federal television channel on Tuesday.

"Sergey Naryshkin was here [in the United States]. He held consultations with his counterparts. Joint struggle against terrorism was discussed. We maintained contact in 2014 during the Sochi Olympics. Of course, we consider joint work this year, during the FIFA World Cup finals," Antonov said.

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WNU Editor: Some are not happy that Russian Foreign Intelligence Service Director Sergei Naryshkin was permitted to enter the country. What's my take .... I am not surprised. Terrorism and finding common ground is probably one reason why the U.S. and Russian spy masters decided that they should meet each other in New York City. But if I look at the timeline when he entered the U.S. .... it was around the same time that Turkey began its military invasion of northern Syria. Coincidence .... maybe not. And if I take the time .... I can probably list a few more events that would have required such a meeting. So .... is the world a safer place if they should not meet? If this blog has done anything in the past ten years .... it is to reveal how dangerous the world truly is. Cooperation .... even with governments that we do not agree with .... is unfortunately one of those necessary evils that we at times must compromise with, because lets face it .... the alternative may not be acceptable.

More News On Russia's Director of Foreign Intelligence Being In The U.S. Last Week

Russian spy chief met U.S. officials in U.S. last week: sources -- Reuters
Sanctioned Russian spy official met with counterparts in US -- Seattle Times/AP
Russian spy chief paid undisclosed visit to Washington despite being on US blacklist -- Los Angeles Times
Russia’s Sanctioned Spy Chief Reportedly Met CIA Director in the U.S. -- Daily Beast
The Trump Administration Let a Russian Spy Chief Visit the US— Even Though He Was Legally Barred -- Mother Jones