Tuesday, September 27, 2011
'Burnishing Obama's pro-Israel credentials' or Warning to Tehran?
"... American policymakers had--and indeed have--many reasons to be wary of Israel initiating a confrontation with Iran--chief among them the roughly 150,000 American troops the United States currently has deployed on either side of Iran in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as other forces and assets assigned to bases in Qatar, Bahrain and elsewhere in the Persian Gulf region.So why has the Obama administration seemingly reversed that call? After all, the Obama White House has sought to curtail Iran's nuclear program through diplomatic and economic measures--and the export of 5,000-pound bunker buster bombs to Israel would seem to severely test Israeli patience for that slow and frustrating effort. And, secondly, why is the information emerging now--nearly two years after the administration carried out the deal?Some policy observers suggest that the U.S. military under Obama was trying to "hug Israel close," in order to increase its feeling of security and thus hopefully stave off the prospect that Israel might launch a surprise strike on Iran on its own, thereby wreaking all sorts of havoc with U.S. military and diplomatic initiatives in the region.The reported transfer may have been a "gesture" by the Obama White House "to assure the Israelis we love them," one Washington Iran expert who insisted on anonymity told The Envoy via email. (Still, he confessed that he found the ultimate motivation behind the transfer mystifying.)...As to the timing of the revelation, while some observers have suggested that American officials may have leaked it in order to burnish Obama's pro-Israel credentials as he faces a tough 2012 presidential campaign, Lake himself, in an interview with NPR Saturday, discounted such a political motivation by his initial sources....The simpler explanation may in this case be the more compelling one: American and Israeli officials initiated the disclosure of the information now to send a potent warning to Iran....(And in actuality, Israel has received earlier shipments of U.S. bunker buster bombs, analysts said. For instance, the Bush Defense Department announced in 2008 plans to sell 1,000 GBU-39 smart bunker buster bombs to Israel, "to develop and maintain a strong and ready self-defense capability," according to an Associated Press report. However, Israeli analysts said at the time that the smaller, 250-pound, precision GBU-39 bombs were more useful against buried arsenals in Lebanon and Gaza--not Iran: "You would need something a lot heavier" for Iran, former Israeli military strategic planner Shlomo Brom told the AP. "The GBU-39 can penetrate 6 feet of concrete, and 6 feet is not enough" for targeting Iran's buried nuclear facilities, he said. By contrast, analysts note that the GBU-28 bombs reportedly transferred in the 2009 Obama deal are 5,000-pound bombs--e.g. twenty times heavier than the ones the Bush administration shipped in 2008.)
Monday, September 26, 2011
Bill Clinton: "The two GREAT tragedies in the History of the Middle East!"
You would think Bubba meant Palestine 1948,
... and Iraq, 2003,
... Noooo, Bubba meant this:
"... Clinton said, "The two great tragedies in modern Middle Eastern politics, which make you wonder if God wants Middle East peace or not, were Rabin's assassination and Sharon's stroke."
'Bunker-Buster Bombs' for ... Peace!
"...At the U.N. last week, Obama sided with Israel by pushing against the Palestinian vote for statehood. Even more telling: behind the scenes Obama has pressed hard to secure the Israeli state—through major military support...
But what participants didn’t know was that Obama had finally authorized military deals the Israelis had been waiting for for years. It is support that has drawn the two nations’ militaries increasingly close even as their leaders seem politely distant.
The aid, U.S. and Israeli officials confirmed to Newsweek, includes the long-delayed delivery of 55 powerful GBU-28 Hard Target Penetrators, better known as bunker-buster bombs, deemed important to any future military strike against Iranian nuclear sites. It also includes a network of proposed radar sites—some located in Arab neighbors—designed to help Israel repel a missile attack, as well as joint military exercises and regular national-security consultations.
“What is unique in the Obama administration is their decision that in spite of the disagreements on the political level, the military and intelligence relationship which benefits both sides will not be spoiled by the political tension,” says Amos Yadlin, former head of intelligence for the Israeli military. He declined to discuss any secret military cooperation.
Even some of the hawks from the George W. Bush administration grudgingly give Obama credit for behind-the-scenes progress...
The bunker busters were a significant breakthrough. The Israelis first requested the sale in 2005, only to be rebuffed by the Bush administration. At the time, the Pentagon had frozen almost all U.S.-Israeli joint defense projects out of concern that Israel was transferring advanced military technology to China.In 2007, Bush informed then–prime minister Ehud Olmert that he would order the bunker busters for delivery in 2009 or 2010. The Israelis wanted them in 2007. Obama finally released the weapons in 2009, according to officials familiar with the secret decision.
James Cartwright, who served until August as the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told Newsweek the military chiefs had no objections to the sale. Rather, he said there was a concern about “how the Iranians would perceive it” and “how the Israelis might perceive it.” In other words, would the sale be seen as a green light for Israel to attack Iran’s secret nuclear sites one day?"
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Ali Abdullah Saleh thanks the United States and Saudi Arabia...
(al Jazeera, tweets)
#Yemen's Ali Abdullah Saleh thanks the United States and Saudi Arabia in helping him "fight Al Qaeda"
AJELive 1 hour ago 12 retweets
The Syrian E-Army: ' ...I've really never seen anything like this before...'
"...They call themselves the Syrian Electronic Army, conducting the most intense cyberwarfare in the Arab world, says Jillian York, with the San Francisco-based Electronic Frontier Foundation.
"I've really never seen anything like this before, like the Syrian Electronic Army, which just seems to have so many members," she says. "I think it's really just their level of persistence and their level of activity that sets them apart."
Are they a part of the regime? That is uncertain, says York, although Syrian President Bashar Assad saluted the youth of the Electronic Army in a June speech when they first emerged.
"So it may be that they are supported by the government; it may be that they are independent pro-government forces," York says..."
The French Connection: JDL 'Vigilante Tourism' in Palestine ...
"... But AGEN says each of its demonstrations have been targeted by the JDL. "They hear about pro-Palestinian demonstrations, such as the Gaza flotilla solidarity events we had this summer, and they show up and start abusing people. It's not self-defence when they actively search for the demonstration," he said. "They hide in the streets when demonstrations happen, and attack the tail-end of the protests."...
"We know the IDF doesn't need us, but we"re going to show our solidarity. We're going over to make sure all areas are covered, and to defend the settlements," he said.
Pro-Palestinian activists such as Shahshahani say the call should be taken seriously. "They are publicly recruiting people with military experience, French citizens with military experience, to serve a foreign country with guns, what is this called?" he said. "We all know of people who were sent to Guantanamo, including French citizens, because of actions like these. What about the ones who aid the Israeli army?"..."
on Egypt: "The Obama Administration is trying to steer a course between its long valued relationship with the military & the civilians"
As anticipated, the Palestinian decision to seek statehood in the UN was surrounded by a frenzy of diplomatic activity and explanatory briefing. In the end, US officials believe they have bought time through the alternative timetable launched by the Middle East Quartet. Behind the scenes, however, officials acknowledge that the longer-term implications of their approach in New York are largely unforeseeable. One senior official commented privately to us: “We want to treat Palestine-Israel in its own basket, separate from the Arab Spring, separate from our human rights agenda, separate from the War on Terror. Somewhere we will have to pay a price.” The most immediate area of concern is the US relationship with the complex mix of now composed of Arab allies, unsettled protest movements and a more assertive Turkey.
The biggest prize in US eyes remains Egypt. Here, the Administration is trying to steer a course between its long-established and valued relationship with the Egyptian military and the more volatile mix of civilian parties. A State Department official summed it up: “We are still facing the usual tensions between stability and democracy.” More importantly, internal debate is intensifying on the subject of Pakistan. Divisions are emerging between the Pentagon and the Intelligence Community on the subject of Pakistan. The charges leveled by top defense officials of official complicity on the part of the Pakistani government in providing a safe haven and direct support to anti-Afghan and anti-NATO forces are complicating US working relationships with their Pakistani counterparts. We doubt that either side will tolerate a complete breakdown in relations, but there is no doubt that US progress in Afghanistan is being severely hampered by the shortcomings in cooperation with Islamabad. Unless this can be fixed, the prospects are for a substantial expansion of unilateral US action in the Waziristan region in the form of drone attacks and operations by special forces. A more optimistic area relates to the Korean Peninsular where the feared hostilities over the summer have not emerged. On the domestic front, further polarization on budgetary matters looms – even at the same time as Treasury officials are urging their Eurozone colleagues to take unified, decisive action.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Uncle Sam & the Saudi Split
'The way it ended for King Faisal in 1975'
"... So once again the Saudis find themselves staring at a test of their tangled relationship with Washington. Is a U.S. veto of a Palestinian state worth jeopardizing the new security and military cooperation with Washington? However angry Saudi leaders are today, they have acknowledged again and again that when it comes to countering the threat from Iran, there is only "one game in town" -- namely, the military might of Uncle Sam. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has even suggested that the United States would be ready to establish a "defense umbrella" overt the Arab Gulf states to protect them against a nuclear-armed Iran.
Nonetheless, King Abdullah remains a man of high emotion and occasional spur-of-the-moment decisions, a character trait that could still produce an unexpected turn in the unsettled U.S.-Saudi relationship."
Friday, September 23, 2011
Neocons & Israel-firsters are delighted with Ford's 'terrific job' in Damascus!
"... And now some American foreign-policy outfits are starting to acknowledge Ford's critical role. The Foreign Policy Initiative, a small advocacy group co-founded by the Weekly Standard's Bill Kristol to promote a strong U.S. military and neoconservative U.S. foreign policy, reversed its earlier position on Ford's presence in the country. The group had previously pressed Washington policymakers to withdraw Ford from Damascus as a gesture of protest against Bashar al-Assad's crackdown -- but now it's calling on the U.S. Senate to confirm Ford as the U.S. ambassador to Syria.
"Ford has been doing a terrific job, and at some personal risk, of making clear to the people of Syria that the US stands with them and against Assad," Robert Kagan, co-founder of FPI and a senior foreign policy fellow at the Brookings Institution, told The Envoy by email Thursday. "I understand why some believed we should withdraw our ambassador, but circumstances have changed. It's very important that Ford be kept in Damascus, and the Senate should confirm him as soon as possible."..."
Sarkozy wants to 'lead from behind' & allow the Palestinians to 'observe' their despair!
"..."Why not envisage offering Palestine the status of United Nations observer state?" Sarkozy continued. "This would be an important step forward. Most important, it would mean emerging from a state of immobility that favors only the extremists."
Sarkozy's push for a middle way--and a greater voice in the traditionally U.S.-dominated peace process--comes as Obama is increasingly asserting a more public defense of Israeli positions and security concerns in its volatile region. The shift seems calculated in part to shore up Obama's support for his 2012 presidential election campaign. In reality, Obama's administration has given more in U.S. military assistance to Israel than any previous administration. ..."
As usual, Arabs cower to US & European pressure at the IAEA
"... With the support of the United States and other Western nations, Israel was active behind the scenes to torpedo the Arab initiative, and were ultimately successful. It would seem that one of the reasons that the Arab bloc withdrew their proposal was last year’s failure, when the conference denied their request to discuss the issue...."
Also, because the status quo benefitted American interests, although the crackdown is still ongoing!
"Yemen—President Ali Abdullah Saleh returned Friday to the Yemeni capital after more than three months of medical treatment in Saudi Arabia in a surprise move that could further enflame violence between forces loyal to him and his opponents. Saleh left Yemen for Saudi Arabia in June after he was seriously injured in an attack on his presidential compound in the capital Sanaa...
But the violence took a serious turn this week after a regionally-sponsored, U.S.-backed deal to transfer power hit a new snag. Saleh had repeatedly refused to sign the deal, and has recently delegated his deputy to restart negotiations with opponents on the deal. It was considered another stalling tactic by Saleh that was followed by a violent crackdown on protesters and the most violent bout of fighting between Saleh loyalists and his armed opponents...
Nearly 100 people have been killed in Sanaa and elsewhere in Yemen since Sunday...."
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