The Muddle East

U N sustainable

How the West bends to East

With Israel being weakened in the Lebanon War, along with the war in Iraq apparently in shambles, the U.S. Administration has become desperate for an exit solution they never bothered with before going to war.

The Bush Doctrine of preemption created after 9/11 is now dead in the water as America begins calling for help from terrorist sponsoring states in the Middle East including Iran, with their Ayatollah Ali Khamenei saying US troops must leave Iraq if security is to be restored. Of course that would be desirable to Iran who would then control the entire region, which is one of many reasons why we should not cut and run from Iraq, despite the howls from the world's leftist appeasers.

The new king of propaganda, Iran's president Ahmadinejad wrote a letter to the American people in an attempt to thwart the administration, saying: ""About one hundred and fifty-thousand American soldiers, separated from their families and loved ones, are operating under the command of the current U.S. administration. A substantial number of them have been killed or wounded and their presence in Iraq has tarnished the image of the American people and government." He goes on about a better approach to governance, recommending "the right of Palestinians to live in their own homeland," and then advises that American troops be brought home from Iraq. "I am confident that you, the American people, will play an instrumental role in the establishment of justice and spirituality throughout the world," Ahmadinejad writes.

Many Shiite leaders in Iraq resent having to share power with the Sunni Arabs being enforced by the new government. Sunni's fume over the influence of neighboring Iran, backed by Shiite parties. Both say they've lost confidence in Americans for not protecting their traditions. “Politically, their position is weaker in all aspects,” Mahmoud Othman, a Kurdish leader, said of the Americans. “They just got weaker and weaker, and many more people who were supporting them are supporting them less.”

According to the BBC, "But although Washington may find it awkward seeing Iran as a growing powerbroker in Iraq, correspondents say, direct talks between Iran and Iraq to resolve the crisis may to some extent let the Bush administration off the hook. Mr Ahmadinejad also stressed that a secure, progressive and powerful Iraq was in the interests of Iran and the whole region." This of course includes Afghanistan, now sliding back into control of Al Qaeda terrorists'.

But this is as clear a sign as any that the post 9/11 invasion of Iraq, while well intentioned was not well thought out, having led to more division in the world than can be handled by the diminishing coalition. The cost is high and rising, which is why president Bush is roaming the globe to get other nations involved to help us out.

Naturally Iran sees more evidence each day that Iraq could become another province for them in their quest to control the world with Islam, their oft stated goal.

Once enemies, Iraq and Iran together would be a new force in the world dominated by religious Sharia law extending to Europe where Muslims are fast becoming the majority. A hop skip and jump to the U.S. is no biggie, as 9/11 quite convincingly proved. See: Sharia law is spreading in the U.K.

Oil is Iran's weapon of choice to be defended by nuclear weapons that are now being protected by Russian missiles and anti-missile defenses.

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An ABC exclusive on November 30, 2006 said that U.S. officials say they have found smoking-gun evidence of Iranian support for terrorists in Iraq: brand-new weapons fresh from Iranian factories. According to a senior defense official, coalition forces have recently seized Iranian-made weapons and munitions that bear manufacturing dates in 2006.

This suggests, say the sources, that the material is going directly from Iranian factories to Shia militias, rather than taking a roundabout path through the black market. "There is no way this could be done without (Iranian) government approval," says a senior official.

Iranian-made munitions found in Iraq include advanced IEDs designed to pierce armor and anti-tank weapons. U.S. intelligence believes the weapons have been supplied to Iraq's growing Shia militias from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, which is also believed to be training Iraqi militia fighters in Iran.

Russia has begun deliveries of the Tor-M1 air defence rocket system to Iran, Russian news agencies quoted military industry sources as saying, in the latest sign of a Russian-US rift over Iran.
Russian rocket deliveries to Iran started

China has also made energy deals with Iran. One wonders how the Saudi's play into all of this as their economy thrives on supplying oil to the U.S., which is being threatened by this new middle eastern power broker.

Here is an excerpt from Former deputy undersecretary of defense, Jed Babbin's article , Saudi Diplomatic Smackdown

In a meeting with Tony Blair last year, the Saudis apparently got the impression that the investigation would go no farther. But to their surprise, this summer British investigators persuaded Swiss magistrates to order disclosure of some confidential bank records. The Times reports that the Saudis "hit the roof" on hearing of this and in September caused a senior diplomat to deliver an unprecedented threat to the Blair government.

The Saudis threatened to suspend diplomatic relations with Britain and end intelligence cooperation on al-Queda. Their threat included - and not just in passing -- cancellation of the latest round of weapons-buying, a contract for 72 Typhoon aircraft, worth about $20 billion and 10,000 British jobs. The nature of this threat compels two conclusions about the Saudis.

First, if the exposure of financial corruption - even on the grand scale of Yamamah - can cause them to threaten to cut Britain off diplomatically and to end intelligence cooperation on al-Queda, the Saudis must believe that their hold on power is terribly fragile. To go to such lengths, they must be more ready to deal with al-Queda than with the effect of their own people learning just how corrupt the Saudi royal family is. Second, they must think that their oil is a weapon that trumps all others, the ultimate tool of blackmail. The Saudis' brinkmanship may be their undoing. By threatening to break off diplomatic relations, they have converted an embarrassment into an international confrontation.

How the British answer the Saudis' ultimatum may have a significant effect on the future of the Middle East. If they stop the investigation, the brakes will be off on Saudi intransigence. Cooperation in tracing terrorists and their funding, only grudgingly given, will probably stop altogether. If they don't stop the investigation, the Saudis may cancel the Typhoon contract and buy Rafale jets from the ever-eager-to-please French. So far, the British haven't caved in.

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posted by F. Scott Melgin @ 11:57 PM