Israel is still demanding US commitment to Iran war

09-03-12 - Israel is still demanding US commitment to Iran war

Here are some of the latest articles having to do with Israel's continued attempts to get the United States to commit to a war with Iran.

Priority is given to the analysis by former CIA officer Philip Giraldi of the latest news regarding Iran/Israel:

• Entangled With Israel by Philip Giraldi. His article is a must read.
  
  Excerpt:
  
  

  Critics like Arnaud de Borchgrave have correctly noted that many former generals and intelligence officers in the United States and Israel have, in fact, decided that the basic premise is wrong. Iran does not pose a threat that could not be contained even if it does some day make the political decision to obtain a crude nuclear device. Launching a new war in the Middle East to prevent it from doing so would create “mayhem” throughout the region...
  
  ... Israel is by its own volition not an ally of the United States in any technical sense because alliances are troublesome things that require rules of engagement and reciprocity, limiting the partners’ ability to act independently. If Israel obtains a virtual commitment from the United States to go to war in 2013, it would mean that Tel Aviv would enjoy the benefits of having a powerful patron to do its fighting without any obligation in return, beyond delaying unilateral military action until a more suitable time. A guarantee from Washington for Israel’s security which still permits unilateral action by Tel Aviv is all too reminiscent of the entangling arrangements that led to World War I.



Next up is another must read: a recent piece by Gareth Porter who routinely gives analysis on the facts about Iran's alleged nuclear weapons program:


• Report Shows Iranian Nuke Restraint
  
  Excerpt:
  
  

  The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report made public Thursday reveals that Iran has actually reduced the amount of 20-percent enriched uranium available for any possible “breakout” to weapons grade enrichment over the last three months rather than increasing it.
  
  Contrary to the impression conveyed by most news media coverage, the report provides new evidence that Iran’s enrichment strategy is aimed at enhancing its bargaining position in negotiations with the United States rather than amassing such a breakout capability.
  
  ....But although that reduction of the stockpile of enriched uranium of greatest concern to the United States was the real significance of the new report, it was not conveyed by the headlines and leads in news media coverage. Those stories focused instead on the fact that production of 20-percent enriched uranium had increased, and that the number of centrifuges at the underground facility at Fordow had doubled. “Nobody has put out the story that their stockpile is shrinking,” said Joe Cirincione, president of the Ploughshares Fund and a leading independent specialist on nuclear weapons policy, in an interview with IPS.




• A Reuters article posted today:
  
  U.S. denies Israeli newspaper report of secret Iran contacts
  
  Excerpt:
  
  

  The White House on Monday denied an Israeli newspaper report that accused Washington of secretly negotiating with Tehran to keep the United States out of a future Israel-Iran war....
  
  ...Administration officials have also made clear they regard the prospect of an Israeli attack on Iran with alarm. General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was quoted in Britain's Guardian newspaper as saying of a prospective Israeli attack on Iran: "I don't want to be complicit if they choose to do it."




• Article posted in yesterday's NY Times on the subject:
  
  To Calm Israel, U.S. Offers Ways to Restrain Iran
  
  Excerpt:
  
  

  United States intelligence officials have said they have no evidence that Iran’s top leaders have decided to take the final steps toward a weapon. Iran’s intentions remain unclear, intelligence officials say.
  
  Last week, the International Atomic Energy Agency reported an increase in the number of centrifuges that Iran has installed in an underground enrichment plant that is largely invulnerable to Israeli attack, but also indicated that Iran has converted some of its most highly enriched fuel to a form that would be difficult to use in a weapon.

It is becoming abundantly clear that the US is not too keen on going along with Netanyahu's demands. And that is a good thing. I hope top military brass and anyone else in our government protest in the clearest possible terms that our interests must remain in the fore in this ongoing battle with Israel over its insistence that America go along with its plans to attack Iran. Let us keep in mind George Washington's wise words in his Farewell Address which can be found found here.