Antiwar Radio with Scott Horton » Turkey

Jason Ditz

Scott Horton — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 05:07:15 +0000

Jason Ditz, managing news editor at Antiwar.com, discusses Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s attempt to purge Sunnis from government; how Iraq’s central state is being challenged by Kurdish and Sunni autonomous regions; the thousands of Americans remaining in Iraq to staff the embassy and provide training; why most members of Congress still don’t understand that the US gave Iraq to Iran on a silver platter; and how the recent killing of 35 Kurds by the Turkish military resembles the US practice of execution without due process.

MP3 here. (19:27)

Jason Ditz is the managing news editor at Antiwar.com. His op-ed pieces have been published in newspapers and other media around the world.

Philip Giraldi

Scott Horton — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 06:17:42 +0000

Former CIA officer Philip Giraldi discusses his article “NATO vs. Syria;” Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the CIA working overtly and covertly to undermine the Assad regime; how the lack of reliable news from Syria makes it hard to tell if there really is a civil war or major uprising; the worse alternatives to secular Middle East dictators who at least tolerate religious minorities; the Syrian opposition’s receipt of “training” and weapons from Europe, Turkey and Libya; and how Obama wages war on the sly, using drones, covert operations and “rebel” proxy fighters on the ground.

MP3 here. (19:47)

Philip Giraldi, a former CIA officer, is a contributing editor to The American Conservative and executive director of the Council for the National Interest. He writes regularly for Antiwar.com.

Pepe Escobar

Scott Horton — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 05:11:41 +0000

Globetrotting journalist Pepe Escobar discusses his article “The shadow war in Syria;” how Turkey is helping NATO and GCC foment a Syrian civil war; why the Muslim Brotherhood is best situated to replace the Assad regime, not the Syrian exiles favored by the US and Europe; Jordan’s susceptibility to an Arab spring revolution (not that King Abdullah II would mind much – he’d rather be in NY City); how the US and NATO are provoking a new Cold War with Russia; and the US backup plan for world domination, should the 1000+ foreign military bases become untenable in future.

MP3 here. (40:22)

Pepe Escobar is the author of Globalistan: How the Globalized World is Dissolving Into Liquid War and Obama Does Globalistan.

An extreme traveler, Pepe’s nose for news has taken him to all parts of the globe. He was in Afghanistan and interviewed the military leader of the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance, Ahmad Shah Masoud, a couple of weeks before his assassination. Two weeks before September 11, 2001, while Pepe was in the tribal areas of Pakistan, Asia Times Online published his prophetic piece, “Get Osama! Now! Or else …” Pepe was one of the first journalists to reach Kabul after the Taliban’s retreat, and more recently he has explored and reported from Iraq, Iran, Central Asia, US and China.

Mark Sheffield

Scott Horton — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 06:32:51 +0000

Mark Sheffield of the Policy on Point blog discusses his post “Arab Spring, Israeli Fall;” how Hosni Mubarak’s departure has freed Egyptians to protest against Palestinian mistreatment; the Obama administration’s demand that Egypt crack down on protesters, making it clear democracy won’t be tolerated if it is used to criticize Israel; why the rift between Turkey and Israel, the major regional powers and former close allies, is a big deal; and indications that US pro-Israel policy is getting increasingly more costly in terms of alliances and influence.

MP3 here. (18:10)

Mark Sheffield runs the Policy on Point blog.

Philip Giraldi

Scott Horton — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 04:59:37 +0000

Former CIA officer Philip Giraldi discusses the CIA’s failure to disclose information on the 9/11 hijackers living in San Diego (before the deed) to the FBI; why government incompetence and inefficiency can explain events (like 9/11) that seem to be deliberately planned or allowed to happen; the major implications for US alliances over a possible veto on the Palestinian state UN resolution; why Israel is worried about (potential) Palestine’s creation along 1967 borders, as well as access to the ICC and UNESCO; and declining relations between Israel and Turkey.

MP3 here. (18:12)

Philip Giraldi, a former CIA officer, is a contributing editor to The American Conservative and executive director of the Council for the National Interest. He writes regularly for Antiwar.com.

Pepe Escobar

Scott Horton — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 05:47:29 +0000

Asia Times columnist Pepe Escobar discusses the Mideast uprisings in terms of rebellion against neoliberal economic policy; Saudi Arabia’s crackdown on Bahrain protesters and steadfast support for the minority Sunni monarchy; why Turkey stands to win considerably more regional influence than does Iran, following successful revolutions; the hypocrisy of US foreign policy laid bare; why it’s time to end the empire and put the money to a more constructive use, as the US has lost the “beacon of democracy” role anyhow; the unavailability of Al Jazeera on American television broadcasts; and how Central Asia’s pipeline politics may change political realities but not the availability of oil in the marketplace.

MP3 here. (33:54)

Pepe Escobar is the author of Globalistan: How the Globalized World is Dissolving Into Liquid War and Obama Does Globalistan.

Eric Margolis

Scott Horton — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 06:51:00 +0000

Eric Margolis, foreign correspondent and author of War at the Top of the World and American Raj, discusses the US preference for new Egyptian Vice President Omar Suleiman as a successor for Mubarak; why the Egypt/1979 Iran comparisons fail despite the dire warnings of neoconservatives; the history of the Muslim Brotherhood, which is now dominated by moderates and old men; how Egyptians are disgraced by their government’s abandonment of the Palestinian cause; how the Palestine Papers lay bare the charade of “peace talks” and expose PA officials as stooges of the US and Israel; and how Turkey, not Tunisia, began the revolutionary push in the Mideast.

MP3 here. (28:04)

Eric S. Margolis is an award-winning, internationally syndicated columnist. His articles appear in the New York Times, the International Herald Tribune, the Los Angeles Times, Times of London, the Gulf Times, the Khaleej Times and Dawn. He is a regular contributor to The Huffington Post. He appears as an expert on foreign affairs on CNN, BBC, France 2, France 24, Fox News, CTV and CBC.

As a war correspondent Margolis has covered conflicts in Angola, Namibia, South Africa, Mozambique, Sinai, Afghanistan, Kashmir, India, Pakistan, El Salvador and Nicaragua. He was among the first journalists to ever interview Libya’s Muammar Khadaffi and was among the first to be allowed access to KGB headquarters in Moscow. A veteran of many conflicts in the Middle East, Margolis recently was featured in a special appearance on Britain’s Sky News TV as “the man who got it right” in his predictions about the dangerous risks and entanglements the US would face in Iraq.

Margolis is the author of War at the Top of the World: The Struggle for Afghanistan, Kashmir and Tibet and American Raj: Liberation or Domination?: Resolving the Conflict Between the West and the Muslim World.

Philip Giraldi

Scott Horton — Sun, 12 Dec 2010 05:37:16 +0000

Former CIA officer Philip Giraldi discusses the difficulty of repairing relations between Turkey and Israel while right-wing political pressure on Netanyahu keeps him from apologizing for the flotilla massacre; how further significant releases make it clear WikiLeaks is indeed performing a valuable public service (in contrast with Giraldi’s previous skepticism); how the US provides material support for terrorism – in terms of money and weapons for the PKK; and why the US is just asking for more blowback by supporting a fringe Marxist-Islamic cult against the Turkish state.

MP3 here. (18:09)

Philip Giraldi, a former CIA officer, is a contributing editor to The American Conservative and executive director of the Council for the National Interest. He writes regularly for Antiwar.com.

Gareth Porter

Scott Horton — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 04:19:52 +0000

Gareth Porter, independent historian and journalist for IPS News, discusses the U.N. fact finding mission that concluded Israeli commandos executed flotilla-activist and U.S. citizen Furkan Dogan, the media blackout (and silence from the Obama administration) on the U.N. report and any discussion of Israel’s culpability and how the threshold for using lethal force was lowered after initial boarding attempts by the Israeli commandos were thwarted.

MP3 here. (18:11)

Gareth Porter is an independent historian and journalist. He is the author of Perils of Dominance: Imbalance of Power and the Road to War in Vietnam. His articles appear on Counterpunch, Huffington Post, Inter Press Service News Agency and Antiwar.com

Jason Ditz

Scott Horton — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 04:17:56 +0000

Jason Ditz, managing news editor at Antiwar.com, discusses Israel’s revised list of goods allowed into Gaza, smuggling tunnels from Egypt that provide “luxury” goods for a few politically connected Gazans, running the clock out on an international flotilla investigation, Obama’s gutless presidency and why Turkey is at a crossroads.

MP3 here. (17:47)

Jason Ditz is the managing news editor at Antiwar.com.