Obama’s $600 Billion Blunder
In August 2012, Russia was admitted into the World Trade Organization. Obama and his officials urged the American and global business leaders to increase their investments in Russia. Many did.
Asa result, foreign investments into our erstwhile Cold War enemy’s economy soared to $94 billion last year. This made Russia the world’s third most attractive investment opportunity, after the U.S. and China, up from the No. 9 position in 2012 (right chart).
After financing and masterminding a violent coup d’etat in Ukraine on Feb 21, which threw a monkey wrench into US relations with the world’s largest country, Obama and his officials are signaling a schizophrenic turn-about-face.
Paying High Price to Stay Off White House “Dog List”
After having slapped limited sanctions on Russia, which will mostly hurt our European Union partners, the White House officials have been pressuring the chief executives of some of America’s largest energy, financial and industrial corporations into canceling plans to attend an international economic forum in Russia to be hosted by 
President Vladimir Putin this month. It is Obama’s latest effort to isolate Moscow over the conflict in Ukraine between the two superpowers (see today’s New York Times story).
The situation has left many American corporate executives anxious. At a closed meeting in Moscow of the American Chamber of Commerce in Russia last week, representatives of United States firms expressed aggravation at being penalized either way.
“The understanding is that those that choose to go will be on the Obama administration’s dog list,” concluded a participant’s summary of the session. “One U.S. executive at today’s meeting warned that Putin/Kremlin will closely watch which U.S. C.E.O.’s cancel and their Russia business will be impacted.”
The situation reflects a turnaround from a year ago, when the Obama administration encouraged participation to strengthen trade ties, the New York Times noted. The chief executives of General Electric, Deere & Company, Citigroup, MetLife, Alcoa, ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, Visa, Chevron, Hill & Knowlton Strategies and Cisco Systems attended last year.
Obama Policy Favors US “Death Merchants” over Other American Corporate Interests
So how much of western money has Obama’s misguided foreign policy put at risk? Over $600 billion, according to the latest report on global investments by UNCTAD, as UN agency that researches such trends. And now they are supposed to just write it off? So that the American “death merchants” can sell more arms to the ever-expanding NATO member-countries? (Defense spending by European NATO countries went up 64% since NATO started expanding to the East – from $164 billion in 2000, to $269 billion in 2013).
The Obama administration’s Ukraine policy has shown clearly which masters Obama serves – the US arms dealers. Which is really a long fall for a president who was elected based on his promises that he would do just the opposite – reduce our overseas military adventures.
Which begs the question: How long will the American business leaders tolerate such a schizophrenic presidency? And a White House whose policy changes like the wind.
Meanwhile, the carnage and human toll caused by the US policy in Ukraine continues (see Odessa Slaughter).
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France Breaks Ranks with US, EU, Proceeds with Russia Military Deal
PARIS, May 12, 2014 – Revealing cracks in the West’s united front, diplomatic sources said France will press ahead with a 1.2 billion-euro ($1.66 billion) contract to sell helicopter carrier ships to Russia because cancelling the deal would do more damage to Paris than to Moscow (see HP story, May 12).
No surprise there. It was just a matter of time. A week ago, we wondered how long will business leaders tolerate a schizophrenic presidency? And two weeks before that, we said that Europe would experience “all pain, no gain” from the Russia sanctions. Both articles pointed out that imposing sanctions on Russia, the Obama administration was in fact acting against the interests EU and NATO countries whom Perfidious Washington is calling its “allies.” (see “Obama’s $600B Blunder”).
This is what this writer said on Apr 26:
New sanctions on Russia, announced today (Apr 26) by the G-7 countries, a part of the Obama “All Bluster, No Muster”-Ukraine policy, are inherently anti-European. They cannot hurt Russia without hurting Europe first and foremost.
Back to today’s (May 12) news reports, the EU remains far behind the U.S. in the severity of the sanctions it has imposed on Russia. Some European governments fear tough trade sanctions on Russia could undermine their own economies, just recovering from the financial crisis, and provoke Russian retaliation.
France has come under pressure from Washington and some EU partners to reconsider its supply of military hardware to Moscow. However, French diplomatic sources said a 2011 contract with Russia for two Mistral helicopter carriers, with an option for two more, would not be part of a third round of sanctions.
“The Mistrals … will be delivered. The contract has been paid and there would be financial penalties for not delivering it,” one source told Huffington Post (see HP story, May 12).
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UPDATE JUNE 17, 2016
BUSINESS LEADERS IGNORE OBAMA’S ADVICE ON RUSSIA SANCTIONS
Over two years ago, this writer asked the question “HOW LONG WILL BUSINESS LEADERS TOLERATE A SCHIZOPHRENIC PRESIDENCY?” – see http://wp.me/p3QU1S-jT (May 6, 2016).
Well, we now know the answer to that question: Two years. That’s how long it took the leaders of major multinational companies to realize that Obama’s “all pain, not gain” foreign policy vis-a-vis Russia only serves the interests of U.S. death merchants while drilling a deep hole in the pockets of everyone else.
And to they rebelled against the U.S. government. Several CEOs of major multinational corporations, including the U.S. giant Exxon Mobil, ignored Obama’s advice against participating in the economic forum hosted by Vladimir Putin in his hometown St Petersburg. And not just business leaders.
The EU president Jean-Claude Juncker was also there. He was the highest ranking EU official to visit Russia since the U.S. forced the EU to impose sanctions against Russia two years ago.
“I take the view that we must talk with Russia, the leadership, its people: for some it must be a radical idea; for me it’s common sense,” Juncker said, drawing applause from the business audience.
Back in April 2014, the Truth in Media also said that Europe would experience “all pain, no gain” from the Russia sanctions. Both articles pointed out that imposing sanctions on Russia, the Obama administration was in fact acting against the interests EU and NATO countries whom Perfidious Washington is calling its “allies.” (see “Obama’s $600B Blunder”).
Of course, don’t expect to find anything about it in the major American media. All of our lamestream media whores are still obediently toeing Obama’s line and applying the sanctions against the truth, not just against Russia.
But if you click on the link below, you can read a comprehensive report about the first day of the St Petersburg conference in today’s London Daily Mail.
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TRUTH IN MEDIA: TRUTH TRUMPS POWER EVERY TIME! 
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