Posted on 12/09/2010 9:32:14 AM PST by MissesBush
Iran is planning to place medium-range missiles on Venezuelan soil, based on western information sources[1], according to an article in the German daily, Die Welt, of November 25, 2010. According to the article, an agreement between the two countries was signed during the last visit o Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez to Tehran on October19, 2010. The previously undisclosed contract provides for the establishment of a jointly operated military base in Venezuela, and the joint development of ground-to-ground missiles.
At a moment when NATO members found an agreement, in the recent Lisbon summit (19-20 November 2010), to develop a Missile Defence capability to protect NATO's populations and territories in Europe against ballistic missile attacks from the East (namely, Iran), Iran's counter-move consists in establishing a strategic base in the South American continent - in the United States's soft underbelly.
According to Die Welt, Venezuela has agreed to allow Iran to establish a military base manned by Iranian missile officers, soldiers of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and Venezuelan missile officers. In addition, Iran has given permission for the missiles to be used in case of an "emergency". In return, the agreement states that Venezuela can use these facilities for "national needs" – radically increasing the threat to neighbors like Colombia. The German daily claims that according to the agreement, Iranian Shahab 3 (range 1300-1500 km), Scud-B (285-330 km) and Scud-C (300, 500 and 700 km) will be deployed in the proposed base. It says that Iran also pledged to help Venezuela in rocket technology expertise, including intensive training of officers
Venezuela has also become the country through which Iran intends to bypass UN sanctions. Following a new round of UN sanctions against the Islamic Republic, for example, Russia decided not to sell five battalions of S-300PMU-1 air defence systems to Iran. These weapons, along with a number of other weapons, were part of a deal, signed in 2007, worth $800 million. Now that these weapons cannot be delivered to Iran, Russia is looking for new customers; according to the Russian press agency Novosti[2], it found one: Venezuela.
Novosti reports the words of Igor Korotchenko, head of a Moscow-based think tank on international arms trade, saying that if the S-300 deal with Venezuela goes through, Caracas should pay cash for the missiles, rather than take another loan from Russia. "The S-300 is a very good product and Venezuela should pay the full amount in cash, as the country's budget has enough funds to cover the deal ," Korotchenko said. Moscow has already provided Caracas with several loans to buy Russian-made weaponry, including a recent $2.2-mln loan on the purchase of 92 T-72M1M tanks, the Smerch multiple-launch rocket systems and other military equipment.
If Iran, therefore, cannot get the S-300 missiles directly from Russia, it can still have them through its proxy, Venezuela, and deploy them against its staunchest enemy, the U.S..
But that is not all. According to Reuters, Iran has developed a version of the Russian S-300 missile and will test-fire it soon, as declared by the official news agency IRNA, two months after Moscow cancelled the delivery to comply with United Nations sanctions[3]. Iran, in fact, has its own capabilities for constructing missiles that could carry atomic warheads. According to a study recently released by the International Institute of Strategic Studies in London, Iran is presently aiming to perfect the already existing solid-fuel, medium-range missile that can carry a nuke to hit regional targets, such as Israel[4]. If a missile base can be opened in Venezuela, many US cities will be able to be reached from there even with short-medium range missiles.
The situation that is unfolding in Venezuela has some resemblance to the Cuba crisis of 1962. At that time, Cuba was acting on behalf of the USSR; now Venezuela is acting on behalf of Iran. At present, the geopolitical situation is very different: the world is no longer ruled by two superpowers; new nations, often with questionable leaders and the ambition of acquiring global status, are appearing on the international scene. Their danger to the free world will be greater if the process of nuclear proliferation is not stopped. Among the nations that aspire to become world powers, Iran has certainly the best capabilities of posing a challenge to the West.
Back in the 1962, thanks to the stern stance adopted by the then Kennedy administration, the crisis was defused
Nowadays, however, we do not see the same firmness from the present administration. On the contrary, we see a lax attitude, both in language and in deeds, that results in extending hands when our adversaries have no intention of shaking hands with us. Iran is soon going to have a nuclear weapon, and there are no signs that UN sanctions will in any way deter the Ayatollah's regime from completing its nuclear program. We know that Iran already has missiles that can carry an atomic warhead over Israel and over the Arabian Peninsula. Now we learn that Iran is planning to build a missile base close to the US borders. How longer do we have to wait before the Obama administration begins to understand threats?
[1] http://www.welt.de/politik/ausland/article11219574/Iran-plant-Bau-einer-Raketenstellung-in-Venezuela.html [2] http://en.rian.ru/mlitary_news/20101015/160963585.html [3] http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3982738,00.html [4] http://www.iiss.org/whats-new/iiss-in-the-press/november-2010/iran-fortifies-its-arsenal-with-the-aid-of-north-korea/
The Jupiter missiles were reputed to not be that reliable or accurate anyway. It was really no great loss.
Where’s JFK when you need him?
Bomb Iran and Venezuala?
We can do that!
Thanks for the ping...
Off in the distance a clock is ticking...
We can do that!
************
Yes we can. But our leaders would rather outsource that kind of thing to a call center in India, rather than to trust Americans.
For the right price, perhaps I’d do it!
Doh . . . . what did we think they would do . . . traitorous bustards.
I believe that given our weak CIC, there will be a lot of tonnage inexplicably sinking in deep waters. And a lot of torpedo/missile test drills that were “prescheduled”...
It becomes an inventory shrinkage/accountability/management issue now determined by the adults in control of the platforms.
If the USN has anyone with a ball left the deep water flounders will be seeing a steel rain for some time.
The one will be long gone before these third world turds can work out launch logistics anyhow.
We just need to let loose Colombia on Venezuela, someone would cap Chavez in the head with 48 hours to avoid that.
Depleted uranium is depleted. It will not undergo a sustained reaaction. ????????????????
I like the way you think!
Thank you fanfan. I’m sure the folks in “plans” have already thought of this, they are much more sneaky than I.
The Jupiter IRBM’s were due to be retired anyway, being kerosene and liquid oxygen fueled as well as being land based non-hardened installations. The former made for reliability problems and longer response times. The latter - the Soviets knew their locations, in fact the missiles in Italy were overflown by a reconnaissance MiG. Our first generation SSBN’s were coming on line then, a more than even replacement. The Jupiter and Thor IRBM’s were only intended as a stop gap until the first generation ICBM’s (Atlas, Titan I) came on line.
The real reason the missiles were pulled out of Cuba was because Castro and Guevara wanted to take control of them and launch them. That scared the crap out of Khruschev.
Didn't care for his politics, but, after all these years I can't help but like him.
Putin...? He'd get a lot more mileage if he'd smile.
“I’ll tell ya’ what it means.
No size restrictions and screw the limit!”
BTW - welcome back!
Oh jeez - I should have known! Posting to a thread from years ago. Dunh!
What if they don’t care if it’s fissile? Dirty might be enough for them.
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