In 2005, then-San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris introduced a controversial proposal to delay prosecution of drug dealers until their third offense. The plan faced swift opposition and was quickly rejected by law enforcement officials.
Harris' proposal suggested that individuals caught selling narcotics would not face charges until they had been arrested for the same offense at least three times. The idea was part of a broader effort to reform the city's approach to drug crime, focusing resources on more serious offenders while.
ANALYSIS – And this may not be an idle threat. It is just the latest Russian campaign of hybrid warfare against NATO. A draft decree by the Russian Defense Ministry dated May 21 suggested Moscow will make minor unilateral adjustments to the country's maritime claims in the Baltic Sea.
If approved, it added, the decree would come into force in January 2025.
This can be seen as part of Valdimir Putin's plan to gain control of the Baltic Sea, otherwise known as a “NATO lake.”
According to the document Moscow intends to declare part of the waters in the eastern part of the Gulf of Finland and the area near Russia's Kaliningrad enclave towns of Baltiysk and Zelenogradsk as internal Russian waters.
Charly Salonius-Pasternak, leading researcher at the Finnish Institute for International Affairs (FIIA) said Moscow was sending a clear signal, reported Newsweek.
He added:
It is quite clearly calibrated to seem like a small, almost technically administrative thing, when in practice, its political repercussions are very serious.
It is completely immaterial that the border adjustments are only squares of meters, it's the principle of a country saying unilaterally, we are just going to change borders, it is obviously not acceptable. Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen suggested in a post on X that Moscow may be trying to sow confusion in the Baltic region. “It is worth remembering that causing confusion is also a hybrid influence,” she said. “Finland is not confused.”
According to Newsweek, the Lithuanian Foreign Ministry said that Moscow's actions “are seen as a deliberate, targeted, escalatory provocation to intimidate neighboring countries and their societies.”
“This is further proof that Russia's aggressive and revisionist policy is a threat to the security of neighboring countries and Europe as a whole,” the spokesperson added.
“Lithuania today is summoning a representative of the Russian Federation for a full explanation. We are also coordinating our response with partners.”
Meanwhile, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis, posted on X that NATO and the EU must respond firmly.
Another Russian hybrid operation is underway, this time attempting to spread fear, uncertainty and doubt about their intentions in the Baltic Sea. This is an obvious escalation against NATO and the EU, and must be met with an appropriately firm response.
— Gabrielius Landsbergis🇱🇹 (@GLandsbergis) May 22, 2024
Newsweek added:
Top officials in Moscow have repeatedly threatened Finland, Sweden and the Baltic nations of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia since it launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Such threats have been twinned with suspected hybrid operations, including GPS interference and the weaponization of migrant flows across EU and NATO borders.
Zygimantas Pavilionis—a member of the Lithuanian parliament and the country's former ambassador to U.S.—told Newsweek on Wednesday that the Baltic “provocation” and other Russian actions should illicit a strong collective Western response.
“It's up to us to either stop Russia from violating international law and all other treaties, or actually invite them to occupy us,” Pavilionis said. “The question is always our side, not so much on Russia's, because Russia always expands, always occupies, and always kills.”
But this isn't Putin's only plan to expand in the Baltic.
A separate Newsweek piece notes that Supreme Commander of the Swedish Armed Forces Micael Byden just said that Putin has “both eyes on Gotland,” referring to the strategically important Swedish island, comparable in size to the state of Rhode Island, which lies at the center of the Baltic.
“Putin's goal is to gain control of the Baltic Sea,” he said. “Who controls Gotland controls the Baltic Sea.”
In March, Sweden also became a NATO member.
The outlet added:
Gotland, around 200 miles north of the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, is Sweden's largest island and its seizure by Moscow could threaten NATO countries from the sea. This could end “peace and stability in the Nordic and Baltic regions,” Byden said, “the Baltic Sea should not turn into Putin's playground.”
Instead of strongly worded statements, NATO should quickly launch naval freedom of navigation operations (FONOPS) in the newly disputed waters, similar to those the U.S. and our allies perform near Taiwan and China in the Pacific.
Actions, not words, are what Putin understands.
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.
Paul Crespo is the Managing Editor of American Liberty Defense News. As a Marine Corps officer, he led Marines, served aboard ships in the Pacific and jumped from helicopters and airplanes. He was also a military attaché with the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) at U.S. embassies worldwide. He later ran for office, taught political science, wrote for a major newspaper and had his own radio show. A graduate of Georgetown, London and Cambridge universities, he brings decades of experience and insight to the issues that most threaten our American liberty – at home and from abroad.
An unhinged home invader forced his way into an elderly woman’s residence in California, stripped
At American Liberty News, we eschew the mainstream media’s tightly controlled narrative to provide our readers with real news, real insights, and the means to take action. We seek out insightful coverage – and partner with knowledgeable and experienced people and organizations to bring you the information and insight our readers demand.
We humbly seek to provide the tools and information necessary for our readers to decide for themselves what is true and what is right.
Putin Threatens To Expand Into NATO’s Baltic Sea ‘Lake’
Kamala Harris’ 2005 Controversial Drug Policy Proposal Resurfaces
In 2005, then-San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris introduced a controversial proposal to delay prosecution of drug dealers until their third offense. The plan faced swift opposition and was quickly rejected by law enforcement officials.
Harris' proposal suggested that individuals caught selling narcotics would not face charges until they had been arrested for the same offense at least three times. The idea was part of a broader effort to reform the city's approach to drug crime, focusing resources on more serious offenders while.
Biden Admits Inflation Reduction Act Was Deceptively Named
Dick Cheney Endorses Kamala Harris, Calls Trump Greatest Threat To US Democracy
Ex-Clinton Pollster Rips Democrats For RFK Jr. Ballot Antics
Largest & Oldest Police Union In The Country Endorses Trump
ANALYSIS – And this may not be an idle threat. It is just the latest Russian campaign of hybrid warfare against NATO. A draft decree by the Russian Defense Ministry dated May 21 suggested Moscow will make minor unilateral adjustments to the country's maritime claims in the Baltic Sea.
If approved, it added, the decree would come into force in January 2025.
This can be seen as part of Valdimir Putin's plan to gain control of the Baltic Sea, otherwise known as a “NATO lake.”
According to the document Moscow intends to declare part of the waters in the eastern part of the Gulf of Finland and the area near Russia's Kaliningrad enclave towns of Baltiysk and Zelenogradsk as internal Russian waters.
The redrawn borders may affect the maritime zones of both Lithuania and the historically neutral Finland, both now NATO members. (RELATED: Putin's Plans For Dominating Europe's Baltic States Revealed)
Charly Salonius-Pasternak, leading researcher at the Finnish Institute for International Affairs (FIIA) said Moscow was sending a clear signal, reported Newsweek.
He added:
According to Newsweek, the Lithuanian Foreign Ministry said that Moscow's actions “are seen as a deliberate, targeted, escalatory provocation to intimidate neighboring countries and their societies.”
“This is further proof that Russia's aggressive and revisionist policy is a threat to the security of neighboring countries and Europe as a whole,” the spokesperson added.
“Lithuania today is summoning a representative of the Russian Federation for a full explanation. We are also coordinating our response with partners.”
Meanwhile, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis, posted on X that NATO and the EU must respond firmly.
Newsweek added:
But this isn't Putin's only plan to expand in the Baltic.
A separate Newsweek piece notes that Supreme Commander of the Swedish Armed Forces Micael Byden just said that Putin has “both eyes on Gotland,” referring to the strategically important Swedish island, comparable in size to the state of Rhode Island, which lies at the center of the Baltic.
“Putin's goal is to gain control of the Baltic Sea,” he said. “Who controls Gotland controls the Baltic Sea.”
In March, Sweden also became a NATO member.
The outlet added:
Instead of strongly worded statements, NATO should quickly launch naval freedom of navigation operations (FONOPS) in the newly disputed waters, similar to those the U.S. and our allies perform near Taiwan and China in the Pacific.
Actions, not words, are what Putin understands.
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.
READ NEXT: Top Dem Staffer Caught Getting Weirdly Physical With Fox News Rising Star
Paul Crespo
Kamala Harris’ 2005 Controversial Drug Policy Proposal Resurfaces
Search
follow us
subscribe
Trending Stories
ABC News Releases Rules For Trump-Harris Debate
ABC News released the rules that both RepublicanTim Walz Called ‘Coward,’ Military ‘Impersonator’ By Fellow Soldiers
ANALYSIS – Dishonorable veteran. I have been hittingWill China Retake Its Lost Lands In Russia’s Siberia?
ANALYSIS – It could happen. "May we liveDangerous Obsession: Secret Service Records Reveal DEI Is Top Priority For All Agency Employees In ‘Every Action, Every Day’
Despite being tasked with the critically-important task ofCommentary
Gun Controlling Brazil’s Ban On X And Free Speech Not Only Predictable But Inevitable
Biden Administration Uses ‘KKK Act’ To Charge Christians Protesting At Abortion Clinics
WEF Makes Another Move To Force Us Into Submission
Criminal Biden Speaks Out – His Latest Statement Will Make You Sick
Security
Report: Texas Oil Company Warns Employees Of Migrant Gangs As Attacks Surge
What Will US Military Leaders Do In An Election Crisis?
US Marines Join South Koreans In Major Amphibious Drill
Report: Justice Department Accuses Russia Of Election Interference, Announces Indictments
Foreign Affairs
Gun Controlling Brazil’s Ban On X And Free Speech Not Only Predictable But Inevitable
Blaze Media Fires Lauren Chen Over Allegations Of Taking Kremlin Cash
FBI Seizes Phones Of NYPD Commissioner, Top Aides In Expanding Probe Into NYC Mayor
Knives Out: After Virtually Outlawing Guns, UK Officials Now Coming After Knives
Business & economics
Biden Admits Inflation Reduction Act Was Deceptively Named
Services And Manufacturing Industries Facing Severe Challenges – What’s Behind The Numbers?
August Private Payrolls Rise By Just 99,000, Marking Smallest Gain Since 2021
Gas Prices Drop Sharply – The Canary In The Coal Mine For An Impending Economic Crisis
heath & science
James Darren, Known For ‘Gidget’ And ‘TJ Hooker,’ Dies At Age 88
Governor Youngkin’s ‘It Only Takes One’ Campaign Aims To Tackle Fentanyl Crisis
Zuckerberg Admits Regret Over Facebook’s COVID Collusion – See The Details
Vance: Trump Would Veto Any Federal Abortion Ban
American Liberty Arms
Former Rep. Gabbard On ‘No Fly List’ Should Concern All Gun Owners
California Gun Control Fails To Prevent 49ers Player From Being Shot, Nearly Killed
Comer Accuses Harris Team Of Possible Conspiracy In Glock Legal Battle
Naked Intruder’s Bizarre Standoff With LAPD Ends In A Blaze Of Bullets
At American Liberty News, we eschew the mainstream media’s tightly controlled narrative to provide our readers with real news, real insights, and the means to take action. We seek out insightful coverage – and partner with knowledgeable and experienced people and organizations to bring you the information and insight our readers demand.
We humbly seek to provide the tools and information necessary for our readers to decide for themselves what is true and what is right.
TOP TAGS
TOP CATEGORIES
FEATURES
American Liberty News ©2022
Evolution Digital Media | 1900 Reston Metro Plz | Suite 600 | Reston, VA 20190