Critical Hour Discussion of Assange Case in Historical Context (7/6/2021)

 Russia Nuclear Negotiator says US Must "Stop Hitting 3 Birds With 1 Stone."

My segment starts at ~56:47

Listen to "Russia Nuclear Negotiator says US Must "Stop Hitting 3 Birds With 1 Stone."" on Spreaker.

[My related articles: Avoiding Assange and Swedish Sex Pistol Aimed at Assange]

Michael Springmann, former American diplomat and political analyst, joins us to discuss the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and the fact that some parties want to "hit three birds with one stone." The Russian ambassador to international organizations in Vienna tweeted, “In the context of #ViennaTalks some analysts and officials advocate for addressing new topics such as regional security and missiles. An attempt to hit 3 birds with 1 stone. Unrealistic and counterproductive. The agreed goal of the talks is just to restore the original #JCPOA.”

Julie Varughese, solidarity network coordinator for Black Alliance for Peace, joins us to discuss Afghanistan. Over 1,000 Afghan soldiers fled into Tajikistan yesterday as Taliban insurgents marched into northern Afghanistan.

Scott Ritter, former UN weapon inspector in Iraq, joins us to discuss the US Air Force awarding a $2 billion contract to develop the Pentagon's new air-launched nuclear cruise missile. The missile, named the Long Range Stand Off weapon (LRSO), is expected to be completed in February 2027.

Karen Spring, a Honduras-based human rights defender, researcher and coordinator for the Honduras Solidarity Network, joins us to discuss the Berta Caceres murder trial. According to a report in The Guardian, the Tegucigalpa high court found David Castillo Mejia, a Honduran businessman and former military intelligence officer, guilty for the March 2016 murder of indigenous environmental activist Berta Caceres.

Jim Kavanagh, writer at thepolemicist.com and CounterPunch, joins us to talk about Julian Assange. Today, Consortium News began a six-part series on Julian Assange and the Espionage Act, prefacing that "the United States has found ways to deny the rights of a free press when it is politically expedient to do so."

Alexander Mercouris, editor-in-chief at theduran.com and host of "The Alexander Mercouris Show" on YouTube, joins us to discuss his article in Consortium News about the Craig Murray case. Mercouris says the UK Supreme Court should grant the whistleblower and blogger permission to appeal because of the journalism questions the case raises.

Laith Marouf, broadcaster and journalist based in Beirut, Lebanon, joins us to talk about the Lebanon crisis. Currently, Lebanon is suffering through a crisis that the World Bank says "could rank among the world's three worst since the mid-1800s that affects the country's standard of living."

Levi Rickert, editor and publisher of NativeNewsOnline.net, joins us to discuss Canada's grim legacy as 182 more graves of Indigenous children were found at a site of a former boarding school. The discovery came after the remains of hundreds of other Indigenous children were found in unmarked graves at other residential school sites across Canada that they were forced to attend throughout the 19th and 20th centuries.

The Critical Hour is a daily 60-minute hard-hitting news analysis and talk radio program hosted by Dr. Wilmer Leon and Garland Nixon.