Romney wins: On heels of intel leak to Russia, Pravda endorses Obama
Thursday, March 29, 2012 at 9:58AM 
Map: CIA World Factbook, U.S. Govnmt.Former Mass. Gov. Mitt Romney, presumptive frontrunner in the Republican Primary nomination process to oppose President Barack Obama, should be smiling at his good fortune.
Pravda, a newspaper based in Moscow (Russia), has endorsed Obama for the U.S. General Election in November.
In an editorial published on Wednesday, Pravda excoriated Romney, praising the relationship Obama has nurtured with Russia. The Weekly Standard made note of the endorsement, citing Pravda’s eagerness to see Obama re-elected as Russia and the “[USA]… see that there is so much to be gained through collaboration.”
One day before the Russia newspaper’s endorsement, major news was breaking in Canada where a naval officer allegedly leaked sensitive data involving U.S. and other allies’ security to Russia.
The Wall Street Journal said in January, government officials in Canada alleged that Lt. Jeffrey Paul Delisle “illegally passed sensitive national-security information to a foreign power.” WSJ said:
“A person familiar with the matter said it was military signals information, or electronic communications coming from allied and other state militaries, and it was allegedly leaked to the Russians.
The intelligence breach touched on a system open to the so-called Five Eyes, an intelligence alliance between the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia and New Zealand, according to another person familiar with the matter. “
The spy caper has been widely reported in media in Canada. A major daily there cited another WSJ story that made an astounding claim—“the breach was on the same level as the data loss the U.S. experienced through WikiLeaks.”
Some experts have theorized the leak may be related to the race for natural resources in the Arctic. In 2011 The US Report wrote about Russia’s deployment of two army brigades to the Arctic. The region’s potentially abundant resources of oil, gas, and aluminum and ruby deposits have drawn interest from a number of countries, but Russia has been very aggressive in staking out claims. That country has even planted a titanium flag on the sea floor beneath the North Pole.
US media have given little attention to such matters, with the Left complacent about Russia, based on a narrow military perspective.
The Left, however, also underestimates the eagerness of Russia to expand her economy, especially when it comes to natural resources. Conversely the US economy has suffered and the Obama administration’s restrictive energy policy has contributed to that decline.
In another column, TUSR pointed out a Russian spy ring bust that came down in 2010 when the FBI arrested people in connection with 10 Russian officers planted in the U.S. The FBI said Russia almost succeeded in placing an agent “near a Cabinet official in the Obama administration…” The FBI released information about the operation labeled ‘Ghost Stories’ in 2011 only after a Freedom of Information Act request.
In 2012 Russia has pressured the U.S. to come to terms over an agreement regarding a missile defense system in Europe. Russia wants to run it jointly with U.S.-led NATO. Perhaps mindful that Obama’s reelection is not guaranteed, Russia wants the agreement sealed as quickly as possible. There was a note of tension in public statements. The Voice of America said, “[President Dmitry Medvedev] said Russia must prepare itself to respond to U.S. missile defense plans…”
In endorsing Obama, Pravda said Romney had “too much testosterone,” apparently not understanding that a sizable portion of the US population will not see “testosterone” as a shortcoming, but as a welcome asset when it comes to U.S. security and strength.
[Ed. Note: In the U.S., New Media Journal helped bring the intel leak in Canada to bloggers’ attention. Most American media outlets do not follow developments in Russia as they relate to the U.S.]
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(Commentary by Kay B. Day/March 29, 2012)
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