Russia: U.S. still preparing cruise missile strike on Iran

[Pharaoh]

MOSCOW — The United States is planning to launch a war with Iran with a salvo of cruise missiles against military and other strategic facilities, a Russian official said.


A leading Russian analyst close to the government of President Vladimir Putin said the Bush administration has been preparing a major air strike against Iran. The analyst said the Iranian release of 15 British Marines abducted in early April has hampered but not canceled U.S. attack plans.

"Preparations to strike Iran's strategic facilities continue," Col. Gen. Leonid Ivashov, president of the Academy for Geopolitical Problems, said. "Three major groups of U.S. forces are still in the Arabian Sea and the Persian Gulf. Altogether, they have up to 450 cruise missiles on alert."



The assessment was the latest by government-financed Russian military analysts that warned of a U.S. war against Iran. Over the last two weeks, some analysts have raised the prospect of a U.S. air strike over the next few weeks.

"Combat nuclear weapons may be used for bombing," Ivashov said. "This will result in radioactive contamination of the Iranian territory, which could possibly spread to neighboring countries."

On April 8, Ivashov, who heads a government think tank, told the Interfax-AVN news agency that the U.S. Navy would be the lead service in the military campaign against Iran. He said the attack would begin with a salvo of advanced cruise missiles.


More at link:


http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/07/front2454202.046527778.html

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EDIT: COPYRIGHT. PLEASE POST ONLY 4 OR 5
PARAGRAPHS FROM THE COPYRIGHTED NEWS SOURCE
PER DU RULES.

[porphyrian]

1. I'd believe it if they weren't working with this administration to resurrect the Cold War. - n/t

[no_hypocrisy]

2. So much for the underlying theory of M.A.D.

[Strelnikov_]

3. And Russia exports what?

Oh, thats right.

Nothing like a fear premium to strengthen the bottom line.

+++

Top World Oil Net Exporters, 2005

Saudi Arabia 9.1
Russia 6.7
Norway 2.7
Iran 2.6
United Arab Emirates 2.4
Nigeria 2.3
Kuwait 2.3
Venezuela 2.2
Algeria 1.8
Mexico 1.7
Libya 1.5
Iraq 1.3
Angola 1.2
Kazakhstan 1.1
Qatar 1.0

=====

Above represents 39.9 Mbbl/dy of 42 Mbbl/dy world export market

18.7 Mbbl/dy of above in Persian Gulf region

[NormanYorkstein]

4. chilling

we should impeach Bush immediately.

[The Magistrate]

9. The Only Thing Chilling About This, Sir

Is that people can still be found to believe these fiction artistes. Never once have their predictions been borne out by events. Psychic hot-lines have a better record for accuracy....

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

19. Bingo, yer' honor.

Wasn't it the Russian websites that were just running articles about a...what...6 April attack by the US on Iran? I guess I missed all the boomboom or something.

Of course, they were running those articles next to their usual fare, like Russian research that shows you can increase psychokinetic abilities by pounding 18 penny spikes up your nose with a hand sledge. Sober and measured reportage like that.

The oil import percentages and "the fear premium" answers a lot of questions as to why this stuff gets published, thirteen to the dozen.

[NormanYorkstein]

24. A Russian official rattling sabers

There is a lot of that lately. I hope it blows over but bad things happen.

[HereSince1628]

5. Wolf...I cry WOLF...WOLF!!! WOLF!!! DAMMIT!!!!!

Yeah, yeah, of course there IS a wolf that's eaten the sheep, but you know...
at this point after so many alarms, no one is gonna get excited until they SEE the wolf.

And then, well, it's just too damned late.

[The Magistrate]

6. The April 6 Fellows, Sir, At It Again, Are They?

These people have less credibilty by now than old Joe Izuzu....

[iconoclastic cat]

8. Shhhh! That's crazy talk! nt

[Pharaoh]

13. Yeah well we needed another

Bush is about To Attack Iran thread just because we can :rofl:

And besides, that fucker is just batshit crazy enough to do it,

God told him to do it you know :hide:

[Parche]

15. Cup of Joe

Hey dont be pickin on Joe!!!! :rofl: :bounce:

[iconoclastic cat]

7. Scary, but Bush is too weak now.

I think he desperately wants to do it, but he can't.

[CJCRANE]

10. Bushco were itching to

buzz the Revolutionary guards with warplanes during the British captives crisis. If the Iranians had shot one down - there's your casus belli.

Luckily Blair said no and Aheminajad released the captives before things escalated.

[LSK]

11. do they have any specific intel that is not commonly posted here???

Seems to be just a bunch of hypotheticals that anyone on the web could write with public knowledge out there.

[ruiner4u]

12. Just post a "US to strike Iran Next Week" thread every week till (if) it comes true...

[Parisle]

17. Arguing about the "date" is irrelevant,... they've got 18 months.

--- I don't think anyone here doubts that Bush is one hardheaded SOB. And we only speculate about what the PNAC gameplan was,..... we surmise that it was to launch multiple wars which would set the US up as planetary master,... and we spend way too much time attributing individual motives to "greed." This may be the last shot of the corporatist elite to stave off the inevitable socialization of the US economy,... They are playing "chicken" with the rest of the world,.. and since they won't be doing the fighting (just reaping the profits).. who knows how far they'll push it? It's a close call,... but I expect an attack on Iran before the Bush administration is done. The democrats have to find a way to prevent it.

[Selatius]

18. 18 months is a gigantic window.

At this point, I think the US would lose far more than it would gain by hitting Iran. I would think most corporatists would be against this, as such a war would impact the bottom line. Why? Gas prices would shoot up and wreck the economy. You don't kill the goose that lays the golden eggs, but you might do so if you're an ideologue who holds to blind faith in your ideology even in the face of reason.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

21. Great idea.

It'll give Grovelbot something to do during the off-season.

[Selatius]

14. We have enough firepower on station to flatten Iran's air defenses right now.

There are two aircraft carriers in the Indian Ocean right now, with a multitude of escort vessels. There's probably a large number of cruise missiles on these ships.

Then we have probably several hundred warplanes in the region, and we have heavy bombers stationed at Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean.

I am pretty certain there is enough firepower there that Bush could have an air war within 24 hours if he gave the order, but he can't just decide to hit Iran.

He has no excuse or any valid justification to start a war because it is likely if Bush did start military action, he would put himself in danger of being prosecuted for the supreme war crime of a "crime against the peace."

In fact, being prosecuted for crimes against the peace incurs the harshest penalty under international law, because that action would necessarily allow other war crimes to be committed during the commissioning of hostilities.

[nebenaube]

23. uh.... hello! anybody home? hello! n/t

[Selatius]

25. Hello, what? What are you aiming at? n/t

[nebenaube]

30. He's already guilty of crimes against peace.

Preemptive war is aggression, has been since Mussolini was hanging on a meat hook.

[Solo_in_MD]

27. But your forgot the almighty Sunburn that will sink all of the US ships, first time every time

:sarcasm: if that wasn't obvious...the tags don't work in the titles.

Iran has recently made operational the latest Russian export model SAMs. They have also been building an IADS. The US demonstrated quite convinvely a few years back that you get chopped to pieces without one. The Russians and their Iranian clients watched the roll into Iraq with intense interest, and should have learned a thing or two. If the primary language of the air defense operators is Russian, it could be a bloody fight.

The US would win the air battle in the end, the question would be how long and at what cost.

[HuffleClaw]

16. i don't see how they can mount a 'suprise attack'

they'll need a PUBLIC 'justification' for war first.

[Parisle]

20. I'm sure this would be way out of line,...

--- But I hope the democrats are having some very private contacts with the Pentagon about this. Bush has totally squandered his CIC authority,... and the Pentagon must realize it. They've got to throw some sort of speedbump into the process,... so that this doesn't just happen while we're all asleep.

[kimmerspixelated]

22. This story doesn't want to go away.

When I first heard about it, I was a bit unsettled, or maybe a lot, unsettled, but even given all the logical points that definitely slash the idea, and the illogical points that make you think, "I wouldn't put it past them," there's one thing that's true: We, the people are watching. They can't fool us this time, because we're on to their imperialistic games. We, of the world, are watching them as well. And most significantly, Iran is watching! It's hard to surprise a country when all eyes are wide open.

[Pharaoh]

26. The thing is with cruise missiles

you don't really need suprise cause there's no way to stop them.

[Solo_in_MD]

28. Thats not exactly true either

[Raskolnik]

29. Its almost as if Russia has some sort of financial interest in maintaining tensions

I wonder if their newfound energy wealth has anything to do with that?