[Pearls Before Swine]

Help me out here. Aside from money, and influence in the Middle East, which the Russians get, aren’t they at all worried about Iran’s push for the bomb?

[Red Badger]

Maybe they put a remote ‘self destruct’ switch hidden in there...........

[Gen.Blather]

“aren’t they at all worried about Iran’s push for the bomb?”

Russia is a theftocracy. Individuals are getting rich. If they’ve thought about a nuclear Iran their plan is to go live in the Virgin Islands when it happens. It’s the rest of the Russians who will die. Putin gets his personal share. He is the richest man in Europe.

Like the US (for different reasons) Russia has no foreign policy.

[familyop]

"Help me out here. Aside from money, and influence in the Middle East, which the Russians get, aren’t they at all worried about Iran’s push for the bomb?"

No. Iran is Russia's close, unofficial ally--war-starter and leverage in the Middle East for the coveted "warm-water port" (or ports, the military kind). From an old comment of mine,...

Russia has military friends in its Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO: members listed below).

All of the following excerpts are from the CIA World Factbook (as accessed on 29OCT06).

Russia
Religions:

Russian Orthodox 15-20%, Muslim 10-15%, other Christian 2% (2006 est.) note: estimates are of practicing worshipers; Russia has large populations of non-practicing believers and non-believers, a legacy of over seven decades of Soviet rule

Kazakhstan
Religions:

Muslim 47%, Russian Orthodox 44%, Protestant 2%, other 7%

Kyrgyzstan
Religions:

Muslim 75%, Russian Orthodox 20%, other 5%

Tajikistan
Religions:

Sunni Muslim 85%, Shi'a Muslim 5%, other 10% (2003 est.)

Uzbekistan
Religions:

Religions: Muslim 88% (mostly Sunnis), Eastern Orthodox 9%, other 3%

Belarus
Government restrictions on freedom of speech and the press, peaceful assembly, and religion continue . . .
Religions:

Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.)

Armenia
Religions:

Armenian Apostolic 94.7%, other Christian 4%, Yezidi (monotheist with elements of nature worship) 1.3%

More currently (Wikipedia),...

Member states

Current members

Armenia (2002)
Belarus (2002)
Kazakhstan (2002)
Kyrgyzstan (2002)
Russia (2002)
Tajikistan (2002)

Observers

Afghanistan (2013)
Serbia (2013)

Possible candidates

Iran

Former members

Azerbaijan (joined 1994, withdrew 1999)
Georgia (joined 1994, withdrew 1999)
Uzbekistan (joined 1994, withdrew 2012)

[familyop]

If you’ve seen the talk about Syria and prophecy, see Edom (not only the original place but paths of Canaanite—Phoenician/Ishmaelite mix of descendants through the northern Mediterranean—Roman Empire, you see—up through the Balkans, Europe, and more recently, the USA).