Free Republic

Of all the things Pope Francis has on his plate -- from an apparent pervert in the Grand Inquisitor's chair, to looming schisms, to dioceses bankrupted by sex scandal payouts, banking scandals, lavender mafias, and empty churches save in Africa, dialogue with avowed Marxists seems like something that ought to be very low on the papal to-do list. But here we are, the pope suddenly in 'dialogue' with members of the world's biggest failed philosophy, holding a mano-a-mano as if the two were equals, and that includes a pep talk. According to LifeSiteNews: VATICAN CITY (LifeSiteNews) — Hosting a Marxist-Christian...

Conservative leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis won Greece’s national elections on Sunday (25 June) with a clear majority, securing a second term during which he vowed to bring about major reforms to transform the country. With nearly all the votes counted, Mitsotakis’s New Democracy party obtained a score of over 40.5%, well ahead of the leftist Syriza party led by former premier Alexis Tsipras, which scored less than 18%. The margin is the widest for the conservatives in almost 50 years, as voters rewarded them for nursing Greece back to economic health after a crippling debt crisis. “The people have given us...

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’ leftist Syriza party suffered its first major defeat in years to the conservative New Democracy party in last Sunday’s European Parliament vote, prompting him to say he would call an early election. The snap election is expected to take place on July 7. On Sunday, the seats of the mayor of Athens and the district governor for the wider Athens area were the top prizes up for grabs in the runoffs of local elections. Results showed New Democracy candidates winning both seats, handing the conservatives another boost before Greeks return to vote in the expected election...

On Wednesday, February 6, 2019, His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras met at the Halki Theological School and issued a strong call for the reopening of the School, as His All-Holiness spoke of the “high symbolism” of the presence of the Greek Prime Minister. “We welcome you with joy and exultation in this historic place and thank you for your participation in this meeting,” said His All-Holiness, who attended the Halki Theological School, as he welcomed Tsipras there. Tsipras became the first serving Greek Prime Minister to visit the seminary. The visit fell on the...

Amazon magnate, the world's richest man and owner of "The Washington Post", Jeff Bezos, says he's being blackmailed by the "National Enquirer", a media outlet friendly to President Trump...... The Justice Department filing its opening brief in the appeal of last year's dismissal of charges against Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy, two of his sons and another key defendant in the Bunkerville Standoff case...... France has pulled its ambassador out of Italy for consultations two days after the leader of one of Italy's governing parties met Yellow Vests protesters in Paris.... After all the conflict or at least it appeared to...

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras called on Turkey to respect International Law at the Press Conference following the 5th trilateral meeting in Israel with Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday... “We have emphasised the need for respect of international law in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Aegean. Respecting, in particular, the right of Cyprus to exercise its sovereign rights in its EEZ “. Mr Tsipras went on to underline the need for a just and viable solution of the Cypriot problem with the scrapping of the guarantees on the occupied part of the island and...

Supporters of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton on Saturday rejected a proposal to include a statement in the party's platform calling for Israel's "end to occupations and illegal settlements," CNN reported. ... While the committee voted against the addition 95-73, CNN reported that the move garnered the loudest negative response of the day from the audience. ... One crowd member was escorted out of the meeting after he stood up and yelled that the party had "sold out" to AIPAC (the American Israel Public Affairs Committee).

The Clinton Scandals will provide endless TV entertainment, which may be more like a reality TV show with the Kardashians. Most people think it will be Donald Trump. He may give us some frank insults that are badly needed now and then to keep people focused, but the Clintons will provide never ending intrigue and scandals. Now we have the new one involving Hillary’s hedge fund manager son-in-law who is the husband of Chelsea Clinton, who set up in 2012 a Greek bond fund with a special arrangement with none other than Goldman Sachs expecting a bailout to boost...

"Clinton sought secret info on EU bailout plans as son-in-law's doomed hedge fund gambled on Greece" Hedge fund manager Marc Mezvinsky had friends in high places when he bet big on a Greek economic recovery, but even the keen interest of his mother-in-law, then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, wasn't enough to spare him and his investors from financial tragedy. In 2012, Mezvinski, the husband of Chelsea Clinton, created a $325 million basket of offshore funds under the Eaglevale Partners banner through a special arrangement with investment bank Goldman Sachs. The funds have lost tens of millions of dollars predicting that...

In 2012, Mezvinski, the husband of Chelsea Clinton, created a $325 million basket of offshore funds under the Eaglevale Partners banner through a special arrangement with investment bank Goldman Sachs. The funds have lost tens of millions of dollars predicting that bailouts of the Greek banking system would pump up the value of the country’s distressed bonds. One fund, exclusively dedicated to Greek debt, suffered near-total losses. Clinton stepped down as secretary of state in 2013 to run for president. But newly released emails from 2012 show that she and Clinton Foundation consultant, Sidney Blumenthal, shared classified information about how...

The European Parliament's chief criticised Turkey Monday for threatening to freeze ties with the EU when the bloc's rotating presidency shifts to Cyprus, which Ankara does not recognise as a sovereign state. "I criticise this. This is not possible," said Martin Schulz, the European Parliament's president, who is in Ankara for an official visit. "I take note that a candidate state says to us we will not negotiate during the presidency of a member state of the European Union," he said. Cyprus takes over the six-month rotating presidency of the EU on July 1, and Turkey has threatened to freeze...

Turkey's high-flying economy, which expanded at a 10 percent annual rate of gross domestic product growth during the first half of 2011,[1] will crash-land in 2012. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄŸan's "economic miracle," to use the Daily Telegraph's admiring words,[2] depended on a 40 percent annual rate of bank credit expansion, which in turn produced a balance of payments deficit as wide as that of southern Europe's crisis countries. Markets have already anticipated a sudden turnaround in the Turkish economy. The Turkish lira (TRY) fell by a quarter between November 2010 and September 2011, making it the world's worst performing...

Turkey and Turkish Cyprus signed a deal on Wednesday in New York to establish a ground for offshore gas exploration in a move set to escalate the already high regional tensions over Mediterranean energy reserves and border issues. On Tuesday, the Greek Cypriot administration confirmed that drilling had begun in a southeastern offshore block, adjoining a gas field in Israeli waters reputed to be the world's largest gas reserves find of the past decade. With the latest agreement the ethnic Turkish northern half of Cyprus, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, marked its marine borders with Turkey and will issue licenses...

Russia has sent two nuclear-powered submarines to patrol Eastern Mediterranean waters around Cyprus and enforce the island's right to explore for undersea oil and gas in its territorial seas, according to information from Defencenet.gr, citing a Russian FM spokesman.

As regional powers attempt to rise, other regional powers will react. This is particularly true in this era of globalization. Turkey is now riding a learning curve. Here is how the latest is unfolding. Turkey warned Thursday it will declare a border on the continental shelf if the island of Cyprus proceeds with offshore oil and gas drilling activities. The Foreign Ministry's announcement came a day after Cyprus President Dimitris Christofias announced that U.S. firm Noble Energy will soon begin exploratory drilling to confirm deposits beneath the sea bed off Cyprus' southern coast despite Turkey's attempts to prevent such a...

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad overshadowed his legitimacy. In a televised interview with the Al-Jazeera, Prime Minister Erdogan said, "when we came to the political power nine years ago, there was a 30-year resentment between Turkey and Syria. We made great efforts to improve relations with Syria with which we share 910 kilometres of border. We always proposed al-Assad to release political prisoners, make constitutional amendments and start multiparty system. Unfortunately, none of these reforms were made. I paid a visit to Aleppo earlier this year. I told al-Assad that we were...

Following are excerpts from an interview with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄŸan, which aired on the Al-Jazeera network on September 11, 2011. Recep Tayyip ErdoÄŸan: The measures we have taken are only the beginning. As you know, we have taken five measures, and we will see the results of these measures in the days, weeks, and perhaps months to come. Israel must realize that it is accountable for its actions, past and present. It will realize this. We have seen that Israel has never observed any of the resolutions issued by the UN General Assembly or Security Council. Israel...

*** The monument will be higher than the Statue of Christ the Redeemer in Brazil, the Statue of Liberty in USA and the Buddha Statue in ChinaMoscow, September 12, Interfax - 135-meter monument representing an angel with a dove will appear in southern shore of Cyprus near "fruit" capital of the island - town of Limassol. The idea of the project Good Angels of Peace symbolizing peace and charity has appeared in Russia five years ago. The monument will be higher than the Statue of Christ the Redeemer in Brazil, the Statue of Liberty in the USA and Statue of...

Throughout the 1990s, Turkish foreign policy analysts had an easy job. After all, Turkish foreign policy was predictable. Ankara cooperated enthusiastically with Washington, whether in the Middle East or in the Balkans. Turkey aligned itself with Israel and kept at arms length from Middle Eastern neighbors such as Syria and Iran. In Europe, Ankara traded heavily with the European Union (EU) but did not allow the EU to dictate foreign policy. The European Union's frequent allegations and criticism of human rights abuses in Turkey, especially with regard to Turkey's fight against Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK, Partiya Karkaren Kurdistan) terrorists, soured...

LUXEMBOURG (Reuters) - Voicing exasperation at Greek Cypriots for rejecting a U.N. plan to reunite their island, the European Union is looking for ways to reward the minority Turkish Cypriots for backing the plan. EU foreign ministers vented their frustration at Saturday's split referendum result as they arrived in Luxembourg on Monday for their last meeting before the bloc enlarges to admit 10 new members -- including a still divided Cyprus -- next Saturday. "We're all profoundly disappointed that this historic opportunity has been lost," EU External Relations Commissioner Chris Patten told reporters. "I don't think the leadership of the...