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Erik Prince: Out of Blackwater and Into China
WSJ ^ | Jan. 24, 2014 | David Feith

Posted on 01/24/2014 10:34:46 PM PST by LeoWindhorse

Erik Prince —ex-Navy SEAL, ex-CIA spy, ex-CEO of private-security firm Blackwater —calls himself an "accidental tourist" whose modest business boomed after 9/11, expanded into Iraq and Afghanistan, and then was "blowtorched by politics." To critics and conspiracy theorists, he is a mercenary war-profiteer. To admirers, he's a patriot who has repeatedly answered America's call with bravery and creativity.

Now, sitting in a boardroom above Hong Kong's Victoria Harbour, he explains his newest title, acquired this month: chairman of Frontier Services Group, an Africa-focused security and logistics company with intimate ties to China's largest state-owned conglomerate, Citic Group. Beijing has titanic ambitions to tap Africa's resources—including $1 trillion in planned spending on roads, railways and airports by 2025—and Mr. Prince wants in.

(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: 2014; africa; airports; blackwater; china; citic; citicgroup; erikprince; frontierservices; fsg; hongkong; prince; railways; xe
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To: Little Pig

“consciously or purposely acting to aid its enemies”

Bingo.


21 posted on 01/24/2014 11:21:21 PM PST by ifinnegan
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To: Little Pig

He is working directly for the Chinese Communist Party to provide for their security and military stronghold in Africa.


22 posted on 01/24/2014 11:22:50 PM PST by ifinnegan
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To: gleeaikin

You betcha. I noted that in my first post too. AfriCom should have been just the first step to a significant US presence throughout the Continent. The Chinese own pretty much everything South of the Sahara in all but name at this point. If the US doesn’t step in, in a big way, soon, it will have lost the initiative, and will end up being a bystander while China basically stripmines Africa of its resources.


23 posted on 01/24/2014 11:23:15 PM PST by Little Pig (Vi Veri Veniversum Vivus Vici.)
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To: LeoWindhorse

This guy is making a statement and taking a stand that he no longer believes in the United States, either our present our future.

Or, he never did ever, in the Seals or in the CIA, and this is just what he does to make a buck and there is no allegiance to anything.


24 posted on 01/24/2014 11:28:02 PM PST by ifinnegan
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To: ifinnegan

But as I noted, China isn’t officially an enemy.

The ordinary public (and the personal opinion of more than a few within the government) may believe China is an enemy of the US, and that it stands for everything the US is against, but on a policy level, China is a “friend”.

You can say what he’s doing is unethical (and you’d get a lot of support), you can say what he’s doing is wrong (and again most would agree), you can probably make a case for it being immoral, or amoral, and you can probably make a case that what he’s doing *should* be treason, or at least a violation of the Logan Act, but for now, he’s not breaking any laws, so don’t toss the “treason” label around so casually (especially since there’s a chance it’ll be needed for someone within the Administration in the near future). Otherwise you dilute it.


25 posted on 01/24/2014 11:28:15 PM PST by Little Pig (Vi Veri Veniversum Vivus Vici.)
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To: Little Pig

And this guy will have helped to set it up To make it very difficult for us to “step it up”.


26 posted on 01/24/2014 11:29:59 PM PST by ifinnegan
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To: gaijin

” Only shoot if you have ammo and don’t like the guy much...”


Thank you for my second LOL of the day... the other being &UCK VEGETABLES!


27 posted on 01/24/2014 11:30:23 PM PST by txhurl (Everyday I think I witnessed the liberals' destructive high-water-mark. In the AM, proven wrong.)
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To: Little Pig; no-to-illegals; All

I don’t know if it is as bleak as all that for us. For example, China had to pull 30,000 workers out of Libya, don’t know how many are back now. Big troubles in the Congo. South Sudan a real trouble spot. The list goes on. Of course, that is why China wants a security firm. We may have lost some interest because our own oil prospects are so much better. Nigeria has not been an oil fun spot either.


28 posted on 01/24/2014 11:30:23 PM PST by gleeaikin
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To: Little Pig

You are wrong about China being a friend, even at policy level.


29 posted on 01/24/2014 11:31:06 PM PST by ifinnegan
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To: LeoWindhorse
“True patriotism sometimes requires of men to act exactly contrary, at one period, to that which it does at another, and the motive which impels them the desire to do right is precisely the same.” ― Robert E. Lee -
30 posted on 01/24/2014 11:39:25 PM PST by LeoWindhorse
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To: ifinnegan

Regardless of their actions, on paper they’re still a “friend” (note the quote marks). Because, on paper i.e. for legal purposes, they’re not designated as an enemy or under some kind of sanctions, he’s not legally a traitor.

I’m not saying that China means only the best for the US. Far from it. I too believe they’re a brutal communist dictatorship that holds far too much influence over the US financial market (among other things). And like Russia, China is not really the US’s friend and certainly means the US harm. But until that knowledge sinks in up in DC, China will continue to be a “friend” at least on paper. And likewise, until that happens, what Prince is doing isn’t actually treason in a legal sense.

Like I said, don’t be sloppy with the language. We’re likely to need it soon, and the last thing we need is for important words like “treason” to have their meanings diluted.


31 posted on 01/24/2014 11:45:55 PM PST by Little Pig (Vi Veri Veniversum Vivus Vici.)
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To: gleeaikin

Those are just the opening moves. All it’ll take is some high-profile attacks, and the PLA will be deployed into Africa. Once that happens, China will steamroll all those strongman governments, and they’ll own the whole Sub-Sahara.


32 posted on 01/24/2014 11:48:33 PM PST by Little Pig (Vi Veri Veniversum Vivus Vici.)
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To: Little Pig

The Chicoms are most assuredly one of our mortal enemies. This kind of stuff will come back to haunt us when they feel they’re finally ready to take us on.


33 posted on 01/24/2014 11:59:08 PM PST by Greetings_Puny_Humans (I mostly come out at night... mostly.)
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To: Little Pig

The term used still in Foggy Bottom type policy is strategic competitor.

We do trade and do business with them. I don’t think that should ever have happened, but it did and is the way of the world.

But as far as friends as nations, they are still militarily provocative.

Remember GWB’s first “crisis”? It was before 911 and Chinese fighters were harassing one of our reconnaissance planes. A pilot named Wang Wei messed up and crashed and died. Our plane was forced to land on Hainan island and the crew were taken prisoner.

Bush’s initial instinct was right and he said they had to let them go. The Communists said no and held them in harsh conditions with sleep deprivation and other low level semi-tortures. They were even physically abusive when initially entering the plane.

The Communist demanded a formal public apology, and who knows what else behind the scenes, and held our men captive until we caved and gave it to them.

Even today their military is harassing and carrying out provocations in trying to assert their claim to the entire East Asia region.

In this day and age nothing seems to be treason and, yeah, he probably wouldn’t be convicted if charged, but it’s pretty much as close as it gets if it isn’t treason.


34 posted on 01/25/2014 12:15:02 AM PST by ifinnegan
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To: ifinnegan

There are certain things and know how’s that are not to be given to communist dictatorships.


The chinese military had Sun Tzu’s “Art of War” long before the west even knew of it..
Current they use it to great advantage.. as do the Russians..

West-point and Annapolis no doubt graduate Anti-American spies(to date)..
except for the older graduates current being Purged.. from the american military..


35 posted on 01/25/2014 1:37:57 AM PST by hosepipe (This propaganda has been edited to include some fully orbed hyperbole..)
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To: LeoWindhorse

I think what this shows is that Chinese commies are less committed to collectivism than the average Obamaite.

How many Chinese soldiers will die, building schools in, say, the blowing sands and flies of Nigeria?

How many uniformed Chinese women will be LIT ON FIRE while trying to make friends with, say, Ugandan tribeswomen standing around a well..?

Armed unapologetically with bombs and bullets, the pragmatic Chinese will pivot from driving over students’ heads to the waiting commodities of the Dark Continent and will prosper.

And so will Eric Prince.


36 posted on 01/25/2014 4:18:08 AM PST by gaijin
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To: ifinnegan

Silly. You act as if you know everything about him and the situation. At his level, its the hall of mirrors.

At the very most, we know nothing.


37 posted on 01/25/2014 4:22:37 AM PST by AnonymousConservative (Why did Liberals evolve within our species? www.anonymousconservative.com)
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To: ifinnegan

I agree, it’s a traitor move. Even if the government are traitors in the U.S. (which they are), he is still a traitor to his fellow Americans.


38 posted on 01/25/2014 4:41:25 AM PST by Bulwyf
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To: Little Pig

China is not an enemy? lol!

If you don’t see the danger there, I can’t help.


39 posted on 01/25/2014 4:43:57 AM PST by Bulwyf
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To: ifinnegan

The US is not at war with China. Providing private security services to Chinese development projects and corporate operations in Africa is in no way treason. Please explain how you think it is.


40 posted on 01/25/2014 5:06:22 AM PST by Justa
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