"Russian Interference" Now Being Blamed For Swaying Vote In Favor Of Brexit

Was Brexit also Putin’s fault?

The simmering anti-Russia hysteria that has emerged in the UK recently has finally boiled over, and it appears last night’s story in the        Times of London claiming that a swarm of Twitter bots reportedly created by a troll farm possibly linked to Russian intelligene (sound familiar?) posted more than 45,000 messages about Brexit in 48 hours during last year’s referendum to try and “so discord” among the public was the grain of rice that tipped the scale.

Details that will sound familiar to anybody who’s been following the ongoing hysteria surrounding the multiple investigations into Russian influence in the US election, the suspicious twitter accounts shared messages that promoted both the ‘Remain’ and ‘Leave’ campaigns, purportedly a “sophisticated” ploy to confuse and bewilder voters.

Most of the tweets seen by this newspaper encouraged people to vote for Brexit, an outcome which Russia would have regarded as destabilising for the European Union. A number were pro-Remain, however, suggesting that the Russian goal may have been simply to sow division.

 

“This is the most significant evidence yet of interference by Russian-backed social media accounts around the Brexit referendum,” said Damian Collins, the Tory MP who chairs the digital, culture, media and sport select committee.

 

“The content published and promoted by these accounts is clearly designed to increase tensions throughout the country and undermine our democratic process. I fear that this may well be just the tip of the iceberg."

According to the Times, more than 150,000 accounts based in Russia, which had previously confined their posts to subjects such as the Ukrainian conflict, switched attention to Brexit in the days leading up to last year’s vote, according to research for an upcoming paper by data scientists at Swansea University and the University of California, Berkeley.

In other words, after months of tweeting about pro-Russian forces in Ukraine, these bots started firing off messages amplifying the voice of the ‘Leave’ campaign into the void.

The researchers said Russian activity spiked on June 23, the day of the referendum, and on June 24 when the result was announced. From posting fewer than 1,000 tweets a day before June 13, the suspicious accounts posted 39,000 tweets on June 24 before dropping off almost entirely.

The Swansea and Berkeley paper says that a “massive number of Russian-related tweets was created a few days before the voting day, reached its peak during the voting and the result and then dropped immediately afterwards”. Tho Pham, one of the paper’s authors, said that “the main conclusion is that bots were used on purpose and had influence”.

Of course, the Times report neglected to explain the Swansea researchers methodology. Facebook, Twitter and Google used the inadequate standard of having one’s browser language set to Russian. It’s unclear whether these researchers something that, like browser language, can be easily changed or mimicked by other groups.

On Monday, Theresa May accused Moscow of using fake news to “sow discord” and of meddling directly in elections. Her remarks followed a brief, impromptu meeting between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin at an Asian economic summit in Vietnam.

In what appeared to be an attempt to deflect attention away from a challenge to her leadership, UK Prime Minister Theresa May blasted Russia Monday evening, using her speech at the Lord Mayor’s Banquet to accuse them of interfering in foreign elections.

May accused Moscow of attempting to "weaponize information" as part of a "sustained campaign of cyberespionage and disruption." Russia"s actions were "threatening the international order," she said.

"We know what you are doing. And you will not succeed. Because you underestimate the resilience of our democracies, the enduring attraction of free and open societies, and the commitment of Western nations to the alliances that bind us," May said.

May listed off a litany of ills she ascribed to Russia since its annexation of Crimea, including fomenting conflict in eastern Ukraine, violating the airspace of European countries, and hacking the Danish ministry of defense and the German Parliament. Russia has also been accused of interfering in elections in the US, the Brexit referendum in the UK, and the independence vote in Catalonia.

Following May’s speech, reports emerged that individuals working on behalf of the Kremlin tried to set up meetings with conservative MPs, including Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson.

Last night, one of the UK"s cyber-defense chiefs adding to the anti-Russia sentiment by accusing Russian intelligence of attacking Britain"s media, telecommunications and energy sectors over the past year.

Ciaran Martin, chief executive of GCHQ"s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), echoed May’s claim that Russia was "seeking to undermine the international system."

Of course, there were at least two prominent British polls who decided to question the dubious accusations of interference.

Jeremy Corbyn wants to “see more evidence” that Russia is trying to undermine Western democracy, his spokesman said Wednesday.

And of course, as we noted yesterday, Nigel Farage pointed out during a speech at the European Parliament that financier George Soros has spent billions of dollars to push his political agenda across Europe, the US and the UK.

“How many of you have taken money from Open Society?” He asked his peers, referring to Soros’s Open Society foundation.

While the Russian hysteria has been raging for a year in the US now, in the UK, it’s only just beginning. In time, we will see of May’s government will continue to use Vladimir Putin as a boogeyman on which they can blame their failure to successfully negotiate amenable Brexit terms for the UK.

Turkey Bars German Lawmakers From Visiting NATO's Incirlik Airbase

At the end of May, the first direct confrontation between Germany and Turkey over the future use of Incirlik airbase emerged, when Turkey"s foreign minister said it is not possible to allow German lawmakers to visit troops stationed at Turkey"s Incirlik air base now, although he said Ankara may reconsider if it sees "positive steps" from Berlin. "We see that Germany supports everything that is against Turkey," Mevlut Cavusoglu told a news conference in Ankara. "Under these circumstances it is not possible for us to open Incirlik to German lawmakers right now ... If they take positive steps in the future we can reconsider."

That particular refusal to let lawmakers visit German soldiers at Incirlik air base ultimately led to Berlin begin relocating its troops stationed in Turkey to Jordan.  As Reuters reported last Sunday, Germany began to pull its troops out of Incirlik, following an approval by the German parliament last month, marking the latest step in one of many bilateral disputes, ranging from a post-coup clampdown by Ankara to Turkish political campaigning in Germany.

German tornado jets were due to keep operating out of Incirlik at least until the end of July as part of a mission providing reconnaissance aircraft to support U.S.-led coalition operations against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. In the meantime the necessary material was to be moved to a new air base in Jordan, where the planes are scheduled to be deployed by October.

A German air tanker refueller left Incirlik for the Jordan base on Sunday, the ministry spokesman told Reuters.

Seemingly displeased by the relocation, which Ankara thought would be mostly a bluff and Germany would not follow through, on Friday Turkey went full circle and once again refused German lawmakers permission to visit the soldiers serving at Incirlik, a party defence spokesman said quoted by Reuters, marking a new escalation in tensions between the two NATO allies.

"The government, especially Chancellor Angela Merkel, must now take the necessary steps to ensure lawmakers can soon visit the soldiers in Konya," said Rainer Arnold, defence spokesperson for the Social Democrats, the junior coalition party in the government.

It is unclear just what leverage Merkel will use in its increasingly bitter conflict with Erdogan, who as a reminder, still is the gatekeeper of European stability, as he is still withholding some 2 million mostly Syrian refugees who are just waiting for Turkey to reopen the proverbial door and Erdogan"s permission to resume the trek toward Europe using the now defunct Balkan route. This is known all too well by Merkel and Brussels.

Furthermore, in an ominous twist, Germany is said to have asked for NATO support in rescheduling the trip. As a reminder, both nations are NATO members.

Meanwhile, as reported overnight, Turkey further antagonized both Germany and NATO - as well as the US - when as Bloomberg reported on Thursday, Turkey agreed to pay $2.5 billion to acquire Russia’s most advanced missile defense system. The proposed deal which was first reported here back in November 2016, has been finalized and the preliminary agreement sees Turkey receiving two S-400 missile batteries from Russia within the next year, then producing another two inside Turkey.

Most concerning for NATO, however is that the systems delivered to Turkey would not have a friend-or-foe identification system, which means they could be deployed against any threat without restriction. As we discussed last night, news of the deal are likely to strain relations between Turkey and NATO to the point of breaking, if not beyond.

Disagreements between Turkey, which has the second-largest army by personnel numbers in NATO, and the U.S., the bloc’s biggest military, have also impacted business. No U.S. companies bid for a Turkish attack helicopter contract in 2006 after Turkey insisted on full access to specific software codes, which the U.S. refused to share, considering it a security risk. Turkey partnered with Italy instead in a $3 billion project to co-produce 50 attack helicopters for its army.

And now, very symbolically, it has picked the sworn enemy of NATO: Russia.

Germany Hit With Wave Of Terror As Parliament Rejects Restrictions On Migration

Via Disobedient Media

Germany has been hit with a series of terror incidents across multiple cities and police have acted preemptively after receiving tips warning of further, more devastating attacks. As the attacks occurred, the country"s parliament moved to reject firmer controls on migration.

On March 9, 2017, a gang of men targeted commuters at Düsseldorf train station in an axe attack that left five injured. Two attackers were arrested and several others were said to be on the run. Just hours later, an elderly man was attacked with a machete at a car park outside Dusseldorf. Authorities stated that they did not believe the two attacks were connected. The next day, two "youths" attacked a train in Hamburg with a toxic chemical substance. Several adults and two young children were injured and received medical attention at the scene. The attack is the latest in a series of chemical terror incidents reported in Europe by Disobedient Media over the past several months. Saturday, police in the city of Essen shut down the Limbecker Platz shopping center after being tipped off that it was the imminent target of multiple suicide bombers. On March 12, 2017, German newspaper Bild reported that an Egyptian asylum seeker left four injured in a stabbing spree sparked by an argument over an unpaid bar tab. The spree of incidents occurred in less than a week"s time.

In the midst of the spike in terror attacks, the German parliament blocked plans to make it easier for the government to deny asylum requests from Tunisian, Algerian and Moroccan migrants on the grounds that their home countries are deemed safe. Migration from North Africa became an important issue in Germany after hundreds of women were sexually assaulted during the 2016 New Year’s Eve celebrations in Cologne and elsewhere by rampaging mobs of migrants from Algeria, Morocco and Iraq. The wave of attacks comes after a number of German counter-terror failures last year, where officials failed to prevent infiltration of their intelligence agencies by ISIS operatives and repeatedly ignored tips from Moroccan officials regarding the Berlin truck attacker Anis Amri.

Trump To Seek Merkel's Advice On Putin, Ukraine Conflict

Ahead of Angela Merkel"s first official meeting with the new administration at the White House next week, Reuters reports that President Trump will ask the German Chancellor for her views on how the United States can help resolve the conflict in eastern Ukraine when they meet next week, senior Trump administration officials said on Friday. Trump will reportedly also ask for Merkel"s advice on how to deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin, advice which is pretty clear to anyone following the establishment German press over the past few years.

The question, of course, is whether Trump will follow Merkel"s advice, which will be in line with the policies of the Obama administration, and will likely lead to further antagonism and distancing between the two nations which until recently had sought to break the ice that had developed in bilateral relations.

Meanwhile, ahead of her meeting with Trump, Merkel said Thursday that Europe must take on more responsibility and continue to stick to its open trade policy amid changes to the trans-Atlantic relationship under the new administration of U.S. President Donald Trump. Merkel told the German Parliament that Europe "must be able to have an independent crisis management in our region" — not in competition, but in addition to NATO.

Merkel said that despite the current changes in the U.S., the "trans-Atlantic partnership based upon our values and interests" is of overriding importance for Europeans — and that "this is the spirit" in which she would lead her talks with Trump in Washington. 

Indirectly referring to Trump"s isolationist economic leanings, she said "even if in parts of the world we see protectionist and nationalist approaches on the rise, Europe may never isolate, seal itself off or withdraw."

Europe needs to be especially open-minded when it comes to trade policy, the chancellor said ahead of a trip to Brussels to attend a European Union summit.

* * *

Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, Russian President Putin, the source of so much controversy for Trump in recent weeks, held two meetings of his own.

On Thursday, he met with Israel"s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in which Putin urged Israel to focus on modern world affairs, after the visiting Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu referred to an ancient legend of an Iranian forefather’s attempt to eradicate the Jewish people. Putin and Netanyahu touched upon a range of issues during their meeting in Moscow, such as the fight against terrorism, the crisis in Syria and Israel’s tough relations with Iran.

President Putin began by wishing Prime Minister Netanyahu a happy Purim, which is a traditional Jewish holiday that marks the saving of the Jewish people from Haman, a vizier in the ancient Persian Empire. In response, Netanyahu said Persia made “an attempt to destroy the Jewish people that did not succeed” nearly 2,500 years ago, stressing that “today there is an attempt by Persia’s heir, Iran, to destroy the state of the Jews.” “They say this as clearly as possible and print it in black and white in their newspapers.”

However, this time Israel has its own territory and an army that protects its territory, Netanyahu said. Putin noted that those events had taken place “in the fifth century BC,” added that “we now live in a different world” and suggested discussing the actual up-to-date problems in the region.

Thenm on Frday, Putin met with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, after which the two held a joint press conference following the latest meeting between the two in Moscow. Below are some of the highlights courtesy of Sputnik:

Vladimir Putin on bilateral cooperation

"Today we have had 6 meetings on the highest level. The atmosphere was very constructive," President Putin told reporters. The two presidents discussed economic issues, cooperation in the humanitarian sphere. Russia is considering Turkey as key partner and Moscow is ready to develop political dialogue with Ankara at highest level, President Vladimir Putin said Friday.

"We can say with certainty that our countries have returned to the path of authentic multi-faceted partnership," Putin said at a news conference following expanded talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an in Moscow. "I"d like to emphasize that we view Turkey as our key partner. We are ready to maintain active political dialogue at the highest level," Putin said.

Vladimir Putin on Russian tourists security in Turkey

Russia’s relevant agencies have been ordered to ensure security of Russian tourists in Turkey, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday. "The relevant agencies were ordered to intensify the elaboration of issues of ensuring the security of Russian tourists, who are yet again showing interest in holidaying at Turkish resorts," Putin said after a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Putin on energy cooperation

Russia expects that the project to build Turkey"s first nuclear power plant, Akkuyu, will soon receive the status of a so-called strategic investment, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday. "We expect that in the near future the Akkuyu nuclear power plant will be given the status of a strategic investment," Putin said at a press conference following the Russian-Turkish talks. "We also agreed to create joint investment fund. Energy is one of our prioritites," the president added.

Russia and Turkey agreed construction of the Blue Stream pipeline. European partners can participate in this project if they want to, the president noted.

Putin on the situation in Syria

Russian President Vladimir Putin said he discussed with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan the situation in Syria, the sides noted the need to join efforts in the fight against terrorism. "Much attention was paid to the situation in the Middle East, to Syria in particular during an exchange of opinions on the current international issues. The sides called for joining efforts of the international community in the fight against terrorism," Putin said after the meeting.

According to the Russian president, the countries agreed to cooperate actively in the fight against terror. "We agreed with our Turkish colleagues to actively cooperate in the fight against terrorist groups, first of all Daesh, by working together via military and security services," he added.

The ceasefire in Syria is generally being observed thanks to the coordinated efforts of Russia, Turkey and Iran, Russian President Vladimir Putin said. "Due to the coordinated actions of Russia, Turkey and Iran, the ceasefire in Syria is generally being observed, the level of violence has decreased significantly," Putin said after a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Moreover, Vladimir Putin did not rule out possible involvement of the United States in joint efforts on the settlement of the Syrian crisis.

Erdogan on bilateral cooperation

Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan thanked Putin for hospitality. Erdogan said that Turkey had completed the process of normalization of relations with Russia during his meeting with Vladimir Putin.

"We managed to overcome provocative actions and all issues. Much work was done to normalize our relations. We think that there is a noticeable shift in our relations. I think that we completely the process of normalization as a result of our meeting today," Erdogan said after the meeting.

According to the Turkish president, the talks in Moscow earlier in the day confirmed the intention to intensify cooperation. "Even if we do not agree on all issues, we keep all channels of communications open, as a result of the establishment of mutual trust we shall continue strengthening cooperation," Erdogan said.

Turkish presdient also said that he hopes that Russia will remove all economic sanctions against Turkey. "We can also improve trade by providing payments in our national currencies," Erdogan told reporters.

Erdogan on situation in Syria

"We have also talked about Syria," Erdogan said. The two presidents discussed what can be done to resolve the Syrian conflict as well as other military conflicts (for example Nagorno-Karabakh conflict). "We believe that all problems in Syria should be resolved," Turkish president said. Our communications channels are opened for discussion, Erdogan noted.

Erdogan expressed his condolences once again to the family of Russian diplonat Karlov killed in Turkey.