ISDEI Instituto de Seguridad, Defensa y Estudios Internacionales

 

US National Security Agency NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden (AFP Photo / Frederick Florin) Switzerland has reportedly decided it will not extradite National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden to the US if he comes to testify against the NSA’s spying activities, Swiss media said.  In the document, titled “What rules are to be followed if Edward Snowden is brought to Switzerland and then the United States makes an extradition request,” Switzerland’s Attorney General stated that Snowden should be guaranteed safety if he arrives to the country to testify, Sonntags Zeitung reported. In particular, the report proposes to ensure the whistleblower’s safety by inviting him as a witness to a parliamentary hearing focusing on the NSA’s surveillance practices. In the document, the authority said that Switzerland does not extradite a US citizen, if the individual’s “actions constitute a political offense, or if the request has been politically motivated,” Swiss ATS news agency repo...

U.S and NATO Responsible for Ukraine Crisis … and West Has Agreed to Cover Up Details About Shoot Down of Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 by Washington's Blog Stephen Cohen is one of America’s top experts on Russia. Cohen is professor emeritus of Russian studies and politics at New York University and Princeton University, and the author of a number of books on Russia and the Soviet Union. Cohen says that the West is mainly to blame for the crisis in Ukraine: This is a horrific, tragic, completely unnecessary war in eastern Ukraine. In my own judgment, we have contributed mightily to this tragedy. I would say that historians one day will look back and say that America has blood on its hands. Three thousand people have died, most of them civilians who couldn’t move quickly. That’s women with small children, older women. A million refugees. Cohen joins other American experts on Russia – such as former U.S. ambassador to the Soviet Union , Jack Matlock – in this assessment. Cohen also...

Counter-terrorism expert Richard Barrett says repentant jihadis 'can expose true nature of Islamic State' An image taken from a YouTube video allegedly shows Islamic State (Isis) militants taking part in a military parade in Mosul, northern Iraq. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images Britain should encourage jihadis fighting in Syria and Iraq to "come home", the former global counter-terrorism director of MI6 has said. David Cameron outlined new powers last week for police to seize the passports of terrorist suspects and stop British extremists from returning to the UK. Others, including Boris Johnson, the London mayor, have called for British jihadis to have their citizenship removed. However, Richard Barrett, a former counter-terrorism chief at MI5 and MI6, said repentant fighters needed "to know that there is a place for them back at home". His comments follow reports that dozens of disillusioned British jihadis are looking at ways to return to the UK, but fea...

On Sunday Obama told Meet the Press he will give a speech on ISIS later this week. The American people are coming around to a idea that the United States must attack ISIS in Iraq and Syria and this may include sending ground troops. Rasmussen conducted a survey following Obama’s strategically planned “we don’t have a strategy” speech last month. It showed Americans were alarmed by the president’s assumed lackadaisical leadership. “Voters regard the radical Islamic terrorist group ISIS as a major threat to the United States and are very worried that President Obama doesn’t have a strategy for dealing with the problem. They remain reluctant to send U.S. troops back to Iraq to take on ISIS, but support is growing,” Rasmussen reported on September 2. “A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 67% of Likely U.S. Voters consider the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) a serious threat to this country.” This followed an incessant campaign by congressional leaders, incl...