This ain't Hell, but you can see it from here

Category: Foreign Policy

  • Spy ring busted in Houston

    The Houston Chronicle reports that the FBI has busted at least 11 people, former Slavs living in the US, in a plan to ship microtechnology to Russia;

    In testimony Wednesday, FBI agent Crosby Houpt said that ARC disguised itself as a traffic-light manufacturer, then lied about what the microelectronics were to be used for in order to avoid drawing any suspicion from suppliers.

    The equipment would be shipped from Houston through an airport in New York and then ultimately on to Russia.

    “ARC would receive shopping lists from Russian entities, and they would go about acquiring the parts on the shopping lists,” Houpt testified.

    He also said Fishenko and other company managers took steps to try and hide what was going on from some of their employees, especially any word that parts would be sent to the military.

    In our continued focus on Russia’s inability to conform to living in a civilized world, a passenger plane from Moscow to Damascus was forced to land by Turkish jets in Ankara because of suspicious cargo aboard;

    Some of the cargo was seized in Turkey before the passenger jet was allowed to continue its trip. No details were given of what was taken off the plane. ?

    “We had no cargo on that airplane. We always deliver our weapons in full compliance with international norms,” said Vyacheslav Davidenko, spokesman for Russia’s monopoly arms exporter Rosoboronexport.

    A Russian-operated ship carrying ammunition was stopped and searched in Cyprus in January. The ship reached Syria with the cargo days after promising the destination would not be Syria but Turkey.

    I guess it’s tough to break your bad habits after decades of depending on an unstable world. Remember that this whole jihadist bullshit was originally funded by the KGB in the 70s & 80s – that’s kinda why they all carry the Kalashnikov rifles.

    But, yeah, we need to point our missile shield at the Russians and let them know that’s what we’re doing instead of making up bullshit about pointing it at Iran. We wouldn’t have to worry about Iran’s nukes if they weren’t getting aid from the Russians, anyway.

  • Not Even a Nice Try

    For those who may have missed it:  the State Department is now denying they ever blamed the Benghazi consulate attack on “Innocence of Muslims.”  They now flatly claim,”That was not our conclusion.”

    Well you sure could have fooled me.  I could have sworn I’d seen statements from officials of the current Administration blaming the “demonstrations” on an “inflammatory film”.  I guess I must have been daydreaming.

    The phrase “don’t piss on my leg and tell me it’s raining” keeps coming to mind.  But maybe that’s just me.

  • Taliban threatens Code Pink group traveling to Pakistan. (Updated)

    Some of you may or may not know but it seems that Code Pink is sending a thirty plus group to Pakistan to join a protest at the use of drones in a areas suspected of hiding Taliban groups. Also photos from them suggest that they are already have arrived.

    Today the full CODEPINK delegation to Pakistan will arrive in Islamabad to begin a week of activities to express their opposition to US drone strikes in Pakistan. A pre-delegation group of American activists has been on the ground in Pakistan for several days meeting with think tanks, human rights organizations, and military and academic institutions.

    The response from Pakistanis has been overwhelmingly positive and welcoming, and many plan to join the CODEPINK contingent as it marches to South Waziristan to protest US drone strikes on October 7th. “We are already receiving an outpouring of support from Pakistani people who are heartened to learn that there are Americans with a conscience who are willing to come all the way to Pakistan to show solidarity and apologize for the drone strikes that have brought so much death and destruction to the impoverished people of north Pakistan,” said CODEPINK cofounder and delegation leader Medea Benjamin.

    Well not everyone is feeling the love. Nor the idea of a peace parade through Pakistan.

    U.S. diplomats Friday warned a group of American peace activists not to attend a rally against U.S. missile strikes scheduled for this weekend, saying terrorists have threatened to attack the demonstration.

    Separately, the Pakistani Taliban warned Friday that they oppose the rally, which is being led by Imran Khan, an internationally famous cricket player who has become one of Pakistan’s most popular opposition politicians largely on the basis of his outspoken criticism of the U.S. role in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

    The demonstration, which has been organized by Khan’s political party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, is scheduled to leave Islamabad Saturday and hopes to enter South Waziristan, part of the militant-plagued tribal area that is considered a no-go zone, on Sunday as a protest against the use of unmanned drones to attack suspected al Qaida and Taliban militants.

    What will happen in the next few days is anyone’s guess, but I have a feeling that this could end badly since the Taliban is threatening to bomb the protest.

    On Saturday, a statement from a Taliban faction said to be based in Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province warned that militants would welcome the protesters with suicide bombings.

    “We ask the brave people of Waziristan not to side with the gang of Jews and Christians – otherwise their fate will be terrible,” the Punjabi Taliban said in the statement.

    UPDATE: It seems that they have been spotted and interviewed by CNN in Pakistan.

  • Well, the Afghanistan Surge Is Officially Over. Now What?

    The Army Times is reporting that the surge in Afghanistan is over.

    U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta announced on Friday the troops had come out, declaring the surge had accomplished its mission.

    Over?  Yes.  But I’d take issue with that “accomplished its mission” part, Mr. SECDEF.

    From day one, the surge in Afghanistan – unlike the surge in Iraq – was smaller than those on the ground felt necessary.   And the results were predictable for anyone who knows a damn thing about military history.

    There’s an old military proverb.   If you’re facing a dug-in enemy company, you can take your objective with a battalion – but you’ll suffer heavy casualties.  Attack with a brigade, and you’ll suffer light casualties while annihilating the enemy.  Attack with a division, and you’ll likely prevail without firing a shot.

    In short:  using too small a force ends up being as costly as hell.  Mass has a quality all its own.

    We forgot all of that when it came time for the Afghanistan surge.

    I agree with the SECDEF that there will be difficult days ahead in Afghanistan.   That’s obvious, since we botched the surge by bringing too little.

    So, pray tell, Mr. SECDEF:   now what?

  • Here’s the Thanks We Get from the Syrian Opposition

    I’ve written a few times before (here, here, and here) on events in Syria.  BLUF:  I think we’re making a serious mistake in supporting the Syrian rebels.  We don’t seem to know – or, alternatively, don’t seem to care – who they are or what they represent.  And our recent track record in Egypt and Libya doesn’t exactly inspire confidence in the current Administration’s ability to manage such crises.

    Well today we have this.  The folks who we’re supporting in Syria (the Syrian rebels) are apparently giving the US the finger by publicly burning the US flag.

    Yeah, that’s from Infowars.  But I don’t think Alex Jones and crew fabricated the video clip.

    As I’ve said before:  tell me again why we’re supporting these folks?

  • Focus…

    This struck me as profound.

    On Friday Sept. 14, at around 10.15 p.m. local time, a force of Taliban gunmen attacked Camp Bastion, in Helmand Province, the main strategic base in southwestern Afghanistan.

    About 15 insurgents (19 according to some reports), wearing U.S. Army uniforms, organized into three teams, breached the perimeter fence and launched an assault on the airfield, that includes the U.S. Camp Leatherneck and the UK’s Camp Bastion, where British royal Prince Harry, an AH-64 Apache pilot (initially believed to be the main target of the attack) is stationed.

    But,

    Considered that the U.S. Marine Corps are believed to be equipped with slightly more than 120 AV-8B+, the attack on Camp Bastion has wiped out 1/15th of the entire U.S. Jump Jet fleet and a large slice of the Yuma-based squadron. A serious problem for the USMC, that was compelled to buy second hand RAF Harrier GR9s to keep the AV-8B+ in service beyond 2030, when it will be replaced by the F-35B.

    The headline: Marine Attack Squadron loses eight Harrier jets in worst U.S. air loss in one day since the Vietnam War

    Can it be that those goat ropers have shifted focus?

     

  • Make It Three for Four

    As in, “Three out of four countries where the US actively encouraged or stood by and did nothing when Arab Spring uprisings lead to a change in government.” That’s the number of such countries in which US diplomatic facilities have been attacked.  So far Tunisia remains the sole exception.

    According to early reports, the US embassy compound in Yemen has been stormed.  It appears the Embassy buildings themselves were not penetrated. However, part of the Embassy compound was occupied, and the US flag at the Embassy compound was reportedly burned.

    A key difference in Yemen is that the current Yemeni government is not dominated by Islamists and/or those linked to al Qaeda.  Yemeni security forces apparently were effective in restoring order shortly after the Embassy had been stormed.

    No reports yet regarding casualties or damage to facilities.

    US support for those Arab Spring uprisings is starting to look like a really good idea about now, isn’t it?

  • A Syria Update

    It’s being reported that Iranian Revolutionary Guard members – posing as “religious pilgrims” – were captured by Syrian rebels ten days ago.  They apparently were there to offer clandestine support for the Assad regime.

    This makes me wonder about a few things.

    1. Would Iran have sent these “pilgrims” had the US not announced support for the Syrian opposition?
    2. Did the Obama Administration even foresee and consider this possibility?
    3. “What we do now, Keemosabe?”

    Oh, and I’d also guess Iran is hedging their bets in Syria too.  I’d be shocked if they aren’t making quiet overtures to some of the more hardline Islamist elements of the Syrian opposition – just in case.

    As I’ve said before:  “I’ve got a bad feeling about this . . . .”