Published: January 19, 2008
Op-Ed Contributor
Crossfire War - Israel Successfully Tests Two-Stage Ballistic Missile-Iran-Syria
By Willard Payne
Crossfire War - RAPID FIRE NEWS=WASHINGTON - JERUSALEM - MOSCOW WATCH - Mediterranean - Persian Gulf Theatre: Washington - Berlin - Rome - Paris - Madrid - Moscow - Jerusalem/Damascus - Beirut - Baghdad - Riyadh - Ankara - Tehran; US Attempts to Make Israel Ballistic Missile Base Against Iran - Moscow States Ready to Use Nuclear Weapons Preventively (First) in Defense of Russia and its Allies (Abkhazia - South Ossetia)
Night Watch: PALMAHIM - Washington is attempting to use Israel as a ballistic missile base against Iran. Debka reported Israel successfully tested a propulsion system for a two-stage missile at its Palmahim base and the missile landed in the same area of the Mediterranean as a Russian tactical missile test. It is no coincidence this test firing took place right after the Russian navy began its 71 days maneuvers in the Mediterranean and it just so happened Israel Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni was recently in Moscow meeting Russia Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. This is also right after U. S. President George W. Bush's visit to the region and while he was in Israel Bush introduced his military liaison Air Force Lieutenant-General William Fraser. General Fraser no doubt monitored both Russia's and Israel's launching. This is obviously Allied coordination but the problem of course is they may assume Tehran will sit back and watch Israel become a launching pad without making any effort to prevent it. Iran does not intend to allow Israel to become that in an atmosphere of peace, any missiles Israel launches will have to be done under fire. [
DEBKA]
This is far too late to be any serious threat to Iran. It is really pathetic almost haphazard policy making at the last minute, especially since every government in the Persian Gulf announced during and after Bush's tour they will not let their countries be used for any attack on Iran. The only government the West-Russia have in the region willing to cooperate with them militarily is Israel.
Tskhinvili - Xinhua/Itar-Tass reported on Friday 77 per cent of the Georgians voted in a referendum their desire for Georgia to become part of NATO. On Saturday, Moscow made its response through Russia Chief of the General Staff Yuri Baluyevsky, "We do not intend to attack anybody. But all our partners must realize that for protection of Russia and its Allies if necessary armed forces will be used, including preventively (first), including with the use of nuclear weapons." Moscow obviously intends to make its point very quickly and very convincingly. The point being the Caucasus, a crossroads of energy pipelines, are going to remain within Russia's sphere of influence, not NATO's or Iran-Turkey, which have increased their support of the Georgian government in Tbilisi for the past two years. The reason for Tehran-Ankara doing so is in the hope that somehow Moscow will be defeated in its military standoff with Tbilisi over the territories of Abkhazia-South Ossetia, which seceded from Georgia at the end of the Cold War in 1990. [XINHUA]
Tehran-Ankara supported Islamic groups in the North Caucasus-Chechnya that defeated Russia in 1994-96 so they now hope Georgia's 250,000 troops can do the same further south, closer to Iran-Turkey's border. But Russia has made numerous reforms in its industry and military under President Vladimir Putin since 1999 that have enabled Moscow to defeat Islamic groups not only in Chechnya, but also in Dagestan along the Caspian. There was also the arrival of former U. S. Secretary of State Dr. Henry Kissinger in Moscow last April to co-chair the Strategic Working Group with former Russia Premier Yevgeny Primakov. At the same time, crossfirewar.com has mentioned Russia exploding conventional vacuum bombs more powerful than nuclear. Dr. Kissinger represents industrial services in the West that realize Russia is the only ally in position to guarantee access to the raw materials between the Black and Caspian Sea.
General Baluyevsky stated these current regional - international realities have forced Moscow to modify its National Security Concept, "As life is ever changing it has become necessary today to update certain provisions of the concept and what is most important, to turn these provisions into a working mechanism for protecting our national security." I suspect the Kremlin has decided to use the declaration of Kosovo's independence next month, and its support from Washington and most of the European Union (EU), to declare Moscow's support for Abkhazia - South Ossetia independence, knowing the standoff with Georgia will then become a war. Not just with Georgia but any nation supporting it.
Night Watch Information Service
www.crossfirewar.com
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