I'll bet they are worried....
In 1976, after Israel’s daring hostage rescue
operation at Entebbe, Chaim Herzog cracked up the Security Council when
he pointed out the blatant hypocrisy of the Soviet Union accusing Israel
of violating another country’s sovereignty. “On these subjects, I defer
to [them], having regard to the Soviet Union’s very considerable record
in these respects in Hungary, in Czechoslovakia, and in other countries
in Eastern Europe,” he said, eliciting laughter from the assembled
delegates.
For reasons explained here, current Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Ron Prosor may have a similar reaction to Russia's claim to be 'deeply worried' by the alleged Israeli strike on Syrian military facilities.
"Moscow is deeply worried by this dangerous development, the
circumstances of which demand an explanation," Russian foreign ministry
spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said.
In a letter to the United
Nations, Russia complained about Israel's "aggressive action" and
demanded that such attacks should not happen again, the spokesman said.
Syria also complained to the UN about the strikes, demanding that the
Security Council "severely condemn the Israeli attack and impose
punitive sanctions on Israel due to its support of Syrian terrorist
organizations."
'Deeply worried'? Well, Cry Me a River, Vlad.
But there's another gem in this Haaretz article: It seems that the airport was not the only target hit last night.
The Lebanese official, who requested anonymity because he was not
authorized to speak to the media, said a Hezbollah convoy heading to
Lebanon had been hit in another set of strikes at Dimas, approximately
half-way between Damascus and the Lebanese border.
The strikes
hit an air base at Dimas where advanced Iranian drones were stationed
along with Syrian troops and Hezbollah forces, the Syrian official said.
There have been several reported observations of Iranian drones during the Syrian conflict.
Yeah, the Russians are 'deeply worried,' alright. Their clients just took one on the chin. Heh.
Labels: Bashar al-Assad, Crimea, Hezbullah, Iran, Mohammad Javad Zarif, Russia, Russian weapons, S-300 missile defense system, Syria, Syrian uprising, Vladimir Putin, Walid Moallem
Flashback: Nancy Pelosi leads Dem delegation to Syria over Bush objections
We haven't heard a lot from Nancy Pelosi on Syria. Maybe
this has something to do with why (original source
here).
Ms. Pelosi was criticized by President Bush for visiting Damascus at a
time when the administration -- rightly or wrongly -- has frozen
high-level contacts with Syria. Mr. Bush said that thanks to the
speaker's freelancing Mr. Assad was getting mixed messages from the
United States. Ms. Pelosi responded by pointing out that Republican
congressmen had visited Syria without drawing presidential censure.
That's true enough -- but those other congressmen didn't try to
introduce a new U.S. diplomatic initiative in the Middle East. "We came
in friendship, hope, and determined that the road to Damascus is a road
to peace," Ms. Pelosi grandly declared.
Never mind that that
statement is ludicrous: As any diplomat with knowledge of the region
could have told Ms. Pelosi, Mr. Assad is a corrupt thug whose overriding
priority at the moment is not peace with Israel but heading off U.N.
charges that he orchestrated the murder of former Lebanese prime
minister Rafiq al-Hariri. The really striking development here is the
attempt by a Democratic congressional leader to substitute her own
foreign policy for that of a sitting Republican president. Two weeks ago
Ms. Pelosi rammed legislation through the House of Representatives that
would strip Mr. Bush of his authority as commander in chief to manage
troop movements in Iraq. Now she is attempting to introduce a new Middle
East policy that directly conflicts with that of the president. We have
found much to criticize in Mr. Bush's military strategy and regional
diplomacy. But Ms. Pelosi's attempt to establish a shadow presidency is
not only counterproductive, it is foolish.
At the time, Pelosi accomplished her goal of rehabilitating Assad. A month later, President Bush's own secretary of state met with Syrian foreign minister
Walid Moallem on the sidelines of a conference in Sharm-el-Sheikh. Pelosi played a major role in ending Syria's isolation.
Isn't it strange that she doesn't seem so proud of that anymore?
Labels: Bashar al-Assad, Condoleeza Rice, George W. Bush, Logan Act, Nancy Pelosi, Syria, Walid Moallem
Syrian foreign minister kicks sand in Obama's face
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Mualem kicked sand in the face of US President Barack Hussein Obama by threatening to
restrict the movements of US Ambassador to Syria Robert Ford.
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Al-Mu'alem admitted in a press conference that regime supporters, who infiltrated the U.S. Embassy compound in Damascus on July 11 while protesting a visit by the U.S. Ambassador to the town of Hama, erred.
Al-Mu'alem said that the protest was legitimate, and the regime was sympathetic to it, but as a country, they are responsible for protecting the embassy.
He added that if the U.S. Ambassador travels to other cities without the regime's approval, Syria would act like the U.S., which limits movements by certain diplomats serving in its territory to a radius of 25 km.
If Obama wanted to withdraw Ford, does anyone think he could get him out at this point (short of military action, which we know Obama would never take against any country other than Israel except maybe with UN approval)? What could go wrong?
Labels: Hama, Robert Ford, US ambassador to Syria, Walid Moallem
Hmmm....
Another document dump from Wikileaks reports that Syria told an Iranian delegation to Damascus in December 2009 that
Syria will not retaliate for an Israeli strike on Iran - even if the Israelis get there through Syrian airspace.
Written by the United States Embassy in Damascus, the cable dated Dec. 20, 2009, summed up the visits earlier that month of Iranian National Security Advisor Saeed Jalili, Vice President and head of the Environmental Department Mahammed-Javad Mahamadzideh and Defense Minister Ahmad Ali Vahidi to Damascus.
The cable cited an unnamed Syrian official who claimed that in the talks the Syrians told the Iranians that they would not participate in an Iranian retaliation to an potential Israeli strike.
“We told them Iran is strong enough on its own to develop a nuclear program and to fight Israel,” the Syrian official was quoted as saying in the cable. “We’re too weak.”
According to the cable, Syria resisted Iranian entreaties to commit to joining Iran if fighting broke out between Iran, Hizbullah and Israel.
The unnamed source told the embassy officials that the Iranian delegation came to Syria “to round up allies” in anticipation of an Israeli military strike.
“It [an Israeli strike on Iran] is not a matter of if, but when,” the source was quoted as having heard from the Iranians.
The cable noted with interest that Qassem Suleimani, the commander of the Al Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps – the force responsible for supporting Iranian proxies throughout the region – had accompanied the Iranian national security adviser Jalili on his visit to Damascus.
According to the cable, Jalili and Soleimani met with Syrian Foreign Minister Wallid Muallem, as well as unspecified members of Hizbullah.
“Suleimani represents the business end of the resistance,” the source said. Suleimani is reported to have played a key role in recent years in arming Hizbullah and Hamas with long-range rockets and missiles.
The source went on to tell the embassy officials that the Syrian military predicted that Israel would fly over Syria on its way to attack Iran and was conducting surveillance of Syrian radar stations with drones ahead of such an operation.
It's about time someone in this region looked out for their own self-interest. Heh.
Labels: Israeli strike on Iran, Qassem Suleimani, Saeed Jalili, Syrian self-interest, Walid Moallem, Wikileaks
