Destruction of a What?
There's a fascinating article in Spiegel Online (in English) on “Operation Orchard”, the operation in September 2007 in Syria in which the Israeli air force destroyed what many have termed a “nuclear plant”, what the article calls “Syria's Al Kibar nuclear reactor”, and the Syrians have characterized as a conventional military facility. Spiegel has interviewed Syrian, Israeli, and American ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on November 4, 2009 11:16
Clearing the Path
If true this: INTELLIGENCE chief Sir John Scarlett has been told that Saudi Arabia is ready to allow Israel to bomb Iran’s new nuclear site. The head of MI6 discussed the issue in London with Mossad chief Meir Dagan and Saudi officials after British intelligence officers helped to uncover the plant, in the side of a mountain near the ancient city of ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on September 28, 2009 16:54
Today’s MUST Foreign Policy Reading
If you only read one thing today, read the for-the-record answers from the Director of National Intelligence to questions from the Senate Intelligence Committee in April 2009. At the very least read the tickler summary from the blog of the Federation of American Scientists, which has done a genuine service in obtaining this document under the Freedom of Information ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on August 8, 2009 10:39
Iran’s Ham and Cheese Sandwich (Updated)
The Times of London is reporting that Iranian scientists are only waiting for the order to go before building a nuclear weapon: Iran has perfected the technology to create and detonate a nuclear warhead and is merely awaiting the word from its Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, to produce its first bomb, Western intelligence sources have told The Times. The sources said ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on August 3, 2009 09:57
Intelligence Agencies Claim Iranian Nuclear Weapons Program
Der Spiegel is reporting that the Bundesnachrichtendienst, Germany's intelligence agency (BND), believes that Iran is about a year from testing a nuclear weapon: As far as Iran is concerned, it is closer to being able to carry out a nuclear explosion than was previously thought. That is the opinion of Germany's foreign intelligence agency, the BND. It's a view shared by ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on July 20, 2009 14:58
The Annotated Obama Cairo Speech
As promised after the break is the complete text of the speech President Obama gave in Cairo today with annotations. I am honored to be in the timeless city of Cairo1, and to be hosted by two remarkable institutions. For over a thousand years, Al-Azhar has stood as a beacon of Islamic learning, and for over a century, Cairo University2 has ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on June 4, 2009 16:21
Obama’s Cairo Speech
As he promised during his election campaign today President Obama addressed the Muslim world on behalf of the United States in Cairo: CAIRO, June 4 --President Obama asked Thursday for a "new beginning between the United States and Muslims around the world" in a speech that urged Islamic nations to embrace democracy, women's rights, religious tolerance and the right of Israel ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on June 4, 2009 10:06
Updates on Iran
As the national elections there near a number of articles on Iran have been published which I'll try to weave into something resembling a narrative. Today Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with President Obama and Congressional leaders and, clearly, Iran was much on the mind of all. PM Netanyahu expressed his concerns to CNN after his meeting ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on May 19, 2009 14:53
Israel vs. Iran: Staying On the Sidelines?
Over at The New Atlanticist Donald Snow has a post in which he reflects on prospective reactions of the Israelis to the threat posed to them by Iran's nuclear development program. The article begins with a discussion of the comments of two participants in a symposium, dean emeritus of the Center for Naval Warfare Studies (Dr. Robert S. Wood) ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on May 3, 2009 15:11
Rogue Agents Tipped Pelosi To Harman Wiretap
"Intelligence officials, angry that former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales had blocked an FBI investigation into Democratic Rep. Jane Harman's interactions with a suspected Israeli agent, tipped off Nancy Pelosi, the House Democratic leader, that Harman had been picked up on a court-ordered National Security Agency wiretap targeting the agent," CQ's Jeff Stein reports. "In doing so, the officials flouted an ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on April 23, 2009 10:16
Will Israel Attack Iran?
There's an article in the Times of London today claiming that Israel's air force is on standby, just waiting for the order from Israel's government before mounting an air assault against Iran's nuclear development sites: The Israeli military is preparing itself to launch a massive aerial assault on Iran's nuclear facilities within days of being given the go-ahead by its new ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on April 18, 2009 11:35
Stand and Deliver!
In his column this morning Tom Friedman bemoans the plight of diplomacy in the modern age of piracy: A secretary of state can broker deals only when other states or parties are ready or able to make them. In the cold war, an age of great powers, grand bargains and reasonably solid client states, there were ample opportunities for that — ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on April 15, 2009 08:51
The Pope Picks Our Ambassadors Now?
I glossed over yesterday's news that the Vatican blocked Caroline Kennedy's appointment as U.S. ambassador for a variety of reasons. Regular commenter Tlaloc emailed me, though, making a good point: [T]he Vatican refuses to accept any ambassador who is not explicitly pro-life including anti-ESC research (such as Doug Kmiec). Various voices on the right have praised them for this principled stand. ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on April 12, 2009 07:08
The Chas Freeman Affair
Pat Lang has Chas Freeman's scathing letter announcing his withdrawal as a candidate for NIC chair, including this brilliant assessment of the state of affairs of the political appointment process: As those who know me are well aware, I have greatly enjoyed life since retiring from government. Nothing was further from my mind than a return to public service. When Admiral ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on March 11, 2009 14:13
Chas Freeman Withdraws (Updated)
President Barack Obama's nominee for the position of chairman of the National Intelligence Council, Charles (Chas) Freeman, who has been praised by some for his foreign policy realism and criticized by others for his ties to the KSA and China, has withdraw his name from nomination: Another top Obama administration appointee pulled the plug today on their nomination, and this time ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on March 10, 2009 17:31
