Posted on 03/24/2006 5:48:17 PM PST by nickcarraway
The Russian government provided Saddam Hussein with intelligence on US military movements and plans during the opening days of the war in 2003, according to a Pentagon report released on Friday.
The unclassified report does not assess the value of the information or provide details beyond citing an Iraqi document that says the battlefield intelligence was provided to Saddam through the Russian ambassador in Baghdad.
A classified version of the Pentagon report, titled "Iraqi Perspectives Project," is not being made public.
Whether by chance or design, one piece of Russian intelligence actually contributed to an important US military deception effort.
By telling Saddam that the main attack on Baghdad would not begin until the Army's 4th Infantry Division arrived around April 15, the Russians reinforced an impression that US commanders were trying to create to catch the Iraqis by surprise.
The attack on Baghdad began well before the 4th Infantry arrived, and the Saddam regime collapsed quickly.
As originally planned by Gen Tommy Franks, the Central Command chief who ran the war, the 4th Infantry was to attack into northern Iraq from Turkey, but the Turkish government refused to go along.
Then why didn't they just join the coalition?
Since you speak with contempt towards men married to Russian ladies, then please do not ping or address me again.
I've got no issue with marrying plain old Russian ladies. Didn't you read my post carefully? I wrote Russian (SVR) wives.
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