Germany & France Quietly Building EU Army -
http://www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=1330
Slowly and quietly the countries of the European Union are building an integrated military force that will soon be
a European Union military in all but name.
Britain has long-maintained its preference for NATO over an EU force and has used its influence to block any moves towards a common European armed forces.
But with Brexit now a reality, there seems to be little standing in the way of the ambitions of France and Germany to lead the EU to realize its ambition
of marshalling its own army.
Rather than a single, open political movement in favor of a common EU army, several member states have taken incremental steps to consolidate specific
units, divert defense funds into sequestered accounts and create new coordinated command structures.
Language, finances and national sentiment have promise to be obstacles to a single-force structure, but these too are being faced down by French and German
initiatives as a host of other European nations follow their lead.
Coordination
The European Union is, despite the intentions of those in Brussels, a union of separate and distinct nationalities, governments, languages and militaries.
The first and most basic challenge that any proposal for a unified military will face is that of coordination among different command structures. For
the first time, the EU created in March a joint military command center.
It is more akin to a proof-of-concept effort at this point, as its only mission is coordinating training missions in Africa (Somalia, Mali and the Central
African Republic).
The headquarters will act as a model, however, for larger future centralized command centers capable of coordinating large-scale military campaigns.
Other coordinated efforts from Europe include the Nordic Battle Group comprised of a mix of Baltic and Nordic states and the Britain's own Joint Expeditionary
Force.
The Nordic Battle Group is only 2,400 strong but the experience gained from coordinating such a collection of nations will be invaluable for the project
of larger European military integration.
Funding
The second major obstacle is funding both of national militaries and of a joint European force. A newly proposed European Defense Fund would gather financial
support for military research and armament from member nations and is projected to begin with a modest funding goal of 3.5 billion Euros from the 19 countries now supporting the proposal.
The countries, which include France, Germany, Italy and Spain, would also benefit from sharing research and resources that would otherwise be duplicated
across 19 national systems.
Jean-Claude Juncker, the President of the European Commission, told the German news site Salzburg.com that "A European army is not a project for the near
future.
It is, however, a project that would give additional weight to the European foreign and security policy. Even though the road may still be long, we could
already focus our strengths better."
The politicians at the head of the EU understand that small steps are necessary to create a common military over the nationalist sentiments of the European
people.
The Cooperative Financial Mechanism, or CFM, could begin drawing funds from the 19 countries as early as 2018, but if successful will be just the first
step towards a common financial base for the European military.
Integration
Coordinating military campaigns from separate national militaries and starting to form a common defense fund are both incremental steps towards a EU military,
but true integration is also now underway through the German Army, the Bundeswehr.
In what amounts to a group of mini-armies under the command of the Bundeswehr, the Netherlands, Romania and the Czech Republic have all integrated brigade-level
forces with Germany. The program is known as the Framework Nations Concept.
In the case of Romania, it is the 81st Mechanized Brigade which will join Germany's Rapid Response Forces Division. The Czech Republic's 4th Rapid Deployment
Brigade, considered the elite frontline force of their army, is now set to integrate into the Germans' 10th Armored Division.
After selling off all their tanks, the Dutch military integrated one of their brigades into Germany's 10th Armored Division as well as combining another
brigade with Germany's Rapid Deployment Brigade.
Although no separate military force was created that would fly the EU flag on the battlefield, the result is the same as each member state slowly begins
to integrate one brigade at a time into a common armed forces system, all under one command.
In this manner, there has been very little objection and most haven't even noticed the change.
At the same time, the German military is growing both in size and funding levels. Since 2014, the Bundeswehr has seen its funding increased by 4.2 percent
and this is projected to grow an incredible 8 percent this year.
As the overall cost-savings become clear for EU nations, it is likely that more countries will choose to integrate into the larger military force commanded
by Germany.
Europe faces historic threats to its existence that range from financial, with the slow collapse of both the euro and the socialist model, to cultural,
with the immense wave of immigration.
Russian aggression and the dangers of Islamic terrorism also wait at Europe's doorstep. All of these factors are likely to push the continent closer to
a common European military in the coming years, especially without the counterweight of Britain to argue the case for NATO.
Will a fully unified EU someday soon be defended by a military to rival that of the United States in size, capability and cohesion? The bureaucrats in
Brussels would like nothing more.
a European Union military in all but name.
Britain has long-maintained its preference for NATO over an EU force and has used its influence to block any moves towards a common European armed forces.
But with Brexit now a reality, there seems to be little standing in the way of the ambitions of France and Germany to lead the EU to realize its ambition
of marshalling its own army.
Rather than a single, open political movement in favor of a common EU army, several member states have taken incremental steps to consolidate specific
units, divert defense funds into sequestered accounts and create new coordinated command structures.
Language, finances and national sentiment have promise to be obstacles to a single-force structure, but these too are being faced down by French and German
initiatives as a host of other European nations follow their lead.
Coordination
The European Union is, despite the intentions of those in Brussels, a union of separate and distinct nationalities, governments, languages and militaries.
The first and most basic challenge that any proposal for a unified military will face is that of coordination among different command structures. For
the first time, the EU created in March a joint military command center.
It is more akin to a proof-of-concept effort at this point, as its only mission is coordinating training missions in Africa (Somalia, Mali and the Central
African Republic).
The headquarters will act as a model, however, for larger future centralized command centers capable of coordinating large-scale military campaigns.
Other coordinated efforts from Europe include the Nordic Battle Group comprised of a mix of Baltic and Nordic states and the Britain's own Joint Expeditionary
Force.
The Nordic Battle Group is only 2,400 strong but the experience gained from coordinating such a collection of nations will be invaluable for the project
of larger European military integration.
Funding
The second major obstacle is funding both of national militaries and of a joint European force. A newly proposed European Defense Fund would gather financial
support for military research and armament from member nations and is projected to begin with a modest funding goal of 3.5 billion Euros from the 19 countries now supporting the proposal.
The countries, which include France, Germany, Italy and Spain, would also benefit from sharing research and resources that would otherwise be duplicated
across 19 national systems.
Jean-Claude Juncker, the President of the European Commission, told the German news site Salzburg.com that "A European army is not a project for the near
future.
It is, however, a project that would give additional weight to the European foreign and security policy. Even though the road may still be long, we could
already focus our strengths better."
The politicians at the head of the EU understand that small steps are necessary to create a common military over the nationalist sentiments of the European
people.
The Cooperative Financial Mechanism, or CFM, could begin drawing funds from the 19 countries as early as 2018, but if successful will be just the first
step towards a common financial base for the European military.
Integration
Coordinating military campaigns from separate national militaries and starting to form a common defense fund are both incremental steps towards a EU military,
but true integration is also now underway through the German Army, the Bundeswehr.
In what amounts to a group of mini-armies under the command of the Bundeswehr, the Netherlands, Romania and the Czech Republic have all integrated brigade-level
forces with Germany. The program is known as the Framework Nations Concept.
In the case of Romania, it is the 81st Mechanized Brigade which will join Germany's Rapid Response Forces Division. The Czech Republic's 4th Rapid Deployment
Brigade, considered the elite frontline force of their army, is now set to integrate into the Germans' 10th Armored Division.
After selling off all their tanks, the Dutch military integrated one of their brigades into Germany's 10th Armored Division as well as combining another
brigade with Germany's Rapid Deployment Brigade.
Although no separate military force was created that would fly the EU flag on the battlefield, the result is the same as each member state slowly begins
to integrate one brigade at a time into a common armed forces system, all under one command.
In this manner, there has been very little objection and most haven't even noticed the change.
At the same time, the German military is growing both in size and funding levels. Since 2014, the Bundeswehr has seen its funding increased by 4.2 percent
and this is projected to grow an incredible 8 percent this year.
As the overall cost-savings become clear for EU nations, it is likely that more countries will choose to integrate into the larger military force commanded
by Germany.
Europe faces historic threats to its existence that range from financial, with the slow collapse of both the euro and the socialist model, to cultural,
with the immense wave of immigration.
Russian aggression and the dangers of Islamic terrorism also wait at Europe's doorstep. All of these factors are likely to push the continent closer to
a common European military in the coming years, especially without the counterweight of Britain to argue the case for NATO.
Will a fully unified EU someday soon be defended by a military to rival that of the United States in size, capability and cohesion? The bureaucrats in
Brussels would like nothing more.
U.S., Russia, Iran draw new red lines in Syria
- By Tom Perry and Babak Dehghanpisheh -
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-idUSKBN19A21A
Russia, Iran and the United States are drawing new red lines for each other in Syria, with Moscow warning Washington
on Monday it would treat any U.S.-led coalition planes in its area of operations as potential targets after the U.S. air force downed a Syrian jet.
on Monday it would treat any U.S.-led coalition planes in its area of operations as potential targets after the U.S. air force downed a Syrian jet.
Tensions escalated on Sunday as the U.S. army brought down the jet near Raqqa and Iran launched missiles at Islamic State targets in eastern Syria - the
first time each state has carried out such actions in the multi-sided Syrian war. A pro-Damascus commander said Tehran and Washington were drawing "red lines".
Russia, like Iran an ally of President Bashar al-Assad, issued a warning of its own to the United States in response to the downing of the Syrian jet,
saying on Monday it would view as targets any planes flying west of the Euphrates River, though it stopped short of saying it would shoot any down.
The incidents reflect mounting competition for areas of Syria where Islamic State (IS) insurgents are in retreat, leaving swathes of territory up for
grabs and posing the question of what comes next for U.S. policy that is shaped first and foremost by the priority of vanquishing the jihadists.
The United States said the Syrian army plane shot down on Sunday had dropped bombs near fighters of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a U.S.-backed
alliance of Kurdish and Arab fighters battling to capture the city of Raqqa from IS.
Russia's Defense Ministry responded on Monday by suspending cooperation with the United States aimed at avoiding air incidents over Syria, where the Russian
air force is bombing in support of Assad's campaigns against rebels and IS.
The Syrian army said the jet was shot down while flying a mission against Islamic State.
The SDF however accused the Syrian government on Monday of attacking its positions using planes, artillery and tanks. "If the regime continues attacking
our positions in Raqqa province, we will be forced to retaliate," SDF spokesman Talal Silo said.
The Syrian government this month marched into Raqqa province from the west but had avoided conflict with the U.S.-backed SDF until the latest incident.
"The SDF is getting big-headed," said the pro-Damascus military commander, a non-Syrian who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity. "There could be
problems between it and Soheil Hassan," said the commander, referring to the Syrian officer leading the government offensive in Raqqa province.
IRAN SENDS "CLEAR MESSAGE"
The United States has said its recent actions against Syrian government forces and allied militia have been self-defensive in nature, aimed at stopping
attacks on U.S.-led coalition forces or their local allies.
These have included several air strikes against pro-government forces that have sought to advance towards a U.S. military base in southeastern Syria near
the border with Iraq, where the U.S. military has been training rebels to fight IS.
The area is of strategic significance to Tehran as it seeks to secure a land corridor to its allies in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon and establish a "Shi'ite
crescent" of influence that has long concerned U.S.-allied states in the Middle East.
The missiles fired by Iran's Revolutionary Guards on Sunday targeted IS in Deir al-Zor province, fast becoming the jihadists' last remaining foothold
in Syria and a declared military priority of Tehran's allies in the Syrian government.
The attacks have showcased the depth of Iran's military presence in Syria: Iranian drones launched from areas around Damascus allowed Revolutionary Guard
commanders to assess the damage done by the missiles in real-time.
Two top Revolutionary Guard commanders said that the strikes were intended to send a message to the perpetrators of militant attacks in Tehran last week
- claimed by Islamic State - that killed 18 people, as well as their supporters.
"I hope that the clear message of this attack will be understood by the terrorists as well as their regional and international supporters," said Amir
Ali Hajizadeh, the head of the Revolutionary Guards' aerospace unit, according to the website of Iranian state television.
Six missiles with a range of between 650 to 700 kilometers (400-435 miles) were fired from western Iran, soaring over Iraqi territory and striking the
targets in Deir al-Zor.
State TV posted black and white aerial video on their website on Monday which they labeled as the moment of impact of the attack. A projectile can be
seen hitting a building followed by thick black smoke billowing out. State TV repeatedly aired video footage of the beginning of the attack Monday, showing several missiles streaking across a dark night sky.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif defended the attack in a Twitter post on Monday. "Iran's missile capability protects its citizens in lawful
self-defense & advances common global fight to eradicate (IS) & extremist terror," he wrote.
Other Iranian officials were more blunt in their assessment of the attack. "This attack, before being a message for the terrorists, is a message for the
supporters of terrorism in the region which are symbolized by the Saudi regime and the Americans," the state television website quoted Iranian parliamentarian Javad Karimi Qoddousi as saying.
Analysts say that more robust U.S. military action in Syria since President Donald Trump took office in January has resulted from his decision to give
the military more autonomy in how it pursues the war on Islamic State.
"The (Syrian) regime is always testing and pushing the boundaries," said Yezid Sayigh, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut.
"I don't think the Americans are testing the red lines. They are saying 'we have a red line here and if you are going to test it we will respond, but it doesn't
mean we are now shifting strategy' because they also want to reassure the Russians."
After Iran fires missiles at IS in Syria, Netanyahu warns it not to threaten
Israel - By Judah Ari Gross and Marissa Newman - http://www.timesofisrael.com/after-missile-launch-netanyahu-warns-iran-against-threatening-israel/
Israel - By Judah Ari Gross and Marissa Newman - http://www.timesofisrael.com/after-missile-launch-netanyahu-warns-iran-against-threatening-israel/
Tehran boasts strike meant to send message to enemies; PM says Israel is 'watching their actions and words'
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Iran not to threaten Israel and to watch its own back Monday, hours after
Tehran launched missiles into Syria in what was seen, in part, as a challenge to Israel.
Tehran launched missiles into Syria in what was seen, in part, as a challenge to Israel.
"I have one message for Iran: Don't threaten Israel," Netanyahu said.
On Monday, Iran said it fired missiles against the Islamic State in eastern Syria in response to a terror attack carried
by the group earlier this month in Tehran, in which 12 people were killed.
by the group earlier this month in Tehran, in which 12 people were killed.
Netanyahu said Israeli forces were "constantly tracking ... the activities of Iran in the region."
Israeli concerns about Iran in Syria have mostly centered around Tehran exploiting unrest in the civil war-plagued country to set up a base to attack
Israel, as well as transferring missile systems and other advanced arms to the Lebanon-based Hezbollah terror group.
"We are watching their actions and watching their words," Netanyahu added.
Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard, a paramilitary force in charge of the country's missile program, said it launched six Zolfaghar ballistic missiles
from the western provinces of Kermanshah and Kurdistan. State television footage showed the missiles on truck missile launchers in the daylight before being launched at night.
While the Iranian missile attack struck a blow to the Islamic State in particular, the strike was seen as a threatening message to other enemies.
"The Saudis and Americans are especially receivers of this message," Gen. Ramazan Sharif of Iran's Revolutionary Guard told state television in a telephone
interview. "Obviously and clearly, some reactionary countries of the region, especially Saudi Arabia, had announced that they are trying to bring insecurity into Iran."
Speaking at his Yisrael Beytenu faction meeting on Monday, Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman said Israel was not concerned by Iran's missile strike.
"Israel is not worried. Israel is prepared for every development. And we are prepared, we have no concerns or worries," Liberman said.
The missile attack was the first by Iran outside its own territory in nearly 30 years, since the Iran-Iraq war of 1980-88.
General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, who heads the Revolutionary Guards' aerospace wing, told state television: "The missiles were fired from Iran and they passed
over Iraq and landed in Syria."
Hajizadeh boasted that "firing these missiles from 600 or 700 kilometers away onto a small building... demonstrates Iran's capacity and intelligence capabilities"
against jihadist groups.
Only A Matter Of Time Before US/Russian Conflict In Syria? -By Michael Snyder -
http://www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=1326
Is the escalating conflict in Syria setting the stage for World War III with Russia?
On Sunday, a U.S. Navy F-18 shot down a Syrian Army SU-22 near Raqqa. This represents a major escalation by U.S. forces, because this is the very first
time that the U.S. military has shot down a Syrian warplane since the civil war began back in 2011.
Needless to say, the Russians were not pleased by this at all. In fact, according to the Independent the Russians have just announced that all U.S. warplanes
flying over Syria will now be treated as "targets" by the Russian military...
Russia has said it will treat US warplanes operating in parts of Syria where its air forces are also present as "targets" amid a diplomatic row caused
by the downing of a Syrian jet.
The country's defence ministry said it would track US-led coalition aircraft with missile systems and military aircraft, but stopped short of saying it
would shoot them down.
A hotline set up between Russia and the US to prevent mid-air collisions will also be suspended.
On Sunday, a U.S. Navy F-18 shot down a Syrian Army SU-22 near Raqqa. This represents a major escalation by U.S. forces, because this is the very first
time that the U.S. military has shot down a Syrian warplane since the civil war began back in 2011.
Needless to say, the Russians were not pleased by this at all. In fact, according to the Independent the Russians have just announced that all U.S. warplanes
flying over Syria will now be treated as "targets" by the Russian military...
Russia has said it will treat US warplanes operating in parts of Syria where its air forces are also present as "targets" amid a diplomatic row caused
by the downing of a Syrian jet.
The country's defence ministry said it would track US-led coalition aircraft with missile systems and military aircraft, but stopped short of saying it
would shoot them down.
A hotline set up between Russia and the US to prevent mid-air collisions will also be suspended.
The Russians have some of the very best anti-aircraft systems on the entire planet, and they would be more than capable of shooting down our jets.
So let us hope that the Russians don't cross that line, because the anti-Russian hysteria in Washington would go to an entirely new level if footage of
U.S. jets being blown out of the sky started running 24 hours a day on CNN, MSNBC and Fox News.
But if U.S. forces keep striking the Syrian military, at some point the Russians are not going to hold back any longer. According to the Washington Post,
Sunday's incident was "the fourth time within a month that the U.S. military has attacked pro-Syrian government forces"...
The Pentagon said the downing of the aircraft came hours after Syrian loyalist forces attacked U.S.-backed fighters, known as the Syrian Democratic Forces,
in the village of Ja'Din, southwest of Raqqa. The rare attack was the first time a U.S. jet has shot down a manned hostile aircraft in more than a decade, and it signaled the United States' sharply intensifying role in Syria's war.
The incident is the fourth time within a month that the U.S. military has attacked pro-Syrian government forces.
Most Americans have absolutely no idea how close to war we are in Syria. One wrong move and we could easily find ourselves in another war in the Middle
East which would be far more serious than the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan ever were.
That is because we probably wouldn't just be fighting the Syrian government. We would also likely be fighting both Russia and Iran.
On Sunday, Iran escalated the conflict themselves by firing a number of missiles into eastern Syria...
Iran's military said Sunday that it has launched several missiles into eastern Syria, targeting Islamic State fighters in retaliation for the twin attacks
that rocked Tehran on June 7.
The strikes are the first time Iran has fired missiles at another country in three decades and represent a major escalation of Iran's role in the war
in Syria.
For the United States, there is nothing to be gained by getting involved in the civil war in Syria. President Assad is definitely a bad guy, but so are
the radical jihadist groups that are trying to overthrow him.
We say that we are conducting operations in Syria in order to fight ISIS, but ISIS forces in Syria are on their last legs at this point. If we allowed
the Russians and the Iranians to focus on finishing off ISIS in Syria, that would free up U.S. resources to focus on ISIS strongholds in Iraq and elsewhere.
And once ISIS is completely vanquished, what will our policy in Syria be? Will we be dragged into a conflict that the Trump administration has always
said that it wanted to avoid? The following comes from CNN...
And yet now, as the Trump administration enters its sixth month, the US is being drawn into the very conflict its inaction had been intended to avoid.
And as forces the US supports face danger from forces supporting the Syrian regime, the questions will get louder: What is US policy in Syria? And will the fight against ISIS lead the US into a war against Assad?
I will try to explain why things have gotten so complicated in the region.
In 2011, the "Arab Spring" was raging all over the Middle East. Saudi Arabia, Turkey and their Sunni allies in the region wanted to use that "opportunity"
to overthrow President Assad in Syria, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and her team decided that would be a wonderful idea.
So massive protests against the Syrian government were organized, and money and arms were funneled to anti-Assad groups.
Pretty soon a horrible civil war broke out, and it has now raged on for six long years. The Syrian refugee crisis that we are dealing with today is the
direct result of this civil war that Hillary Clinton had a hand in starting.
And everything was going according to plan at first. The radical jihadist groups that Saudi Arabia and Turkey were backing were winning, and it looked
like Assad was going to lose.
But then Russia, Iran and Hezbollah intervened, and that totally turned the tide of the war.
Saudi Arabia, Turkey and their allies are still absolutely determined to find a way to win the war in Syria, and they see the U.S. as the key.
They would love to get the U.S. into the war, but so far the U.S. has been hesitant to get fully involved in another quagmire in the Middle East.
But the Trump administration is unlikely to completely stop operations in Syria either, because Trump very much wants to have a positive relationship
with the Saudis.
As ISIS continues to lose more territory, U.S. forces will increasingly find themselves operating in very close proximity to Syrian, Russian and Iranian
forces.
We have already had four incidents of conflict between the two sides within the last month, and if we are not very careful we could end up in a major
regional war in the Middle East.
Abbas is dragging Israel into war with Hamas -
Tovah Lazaroff - http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Liberman-Abbas-is-dragging-Israel-into-war-with-Hamas-497607
http://www.debka.com/article/26114/First-Russian-base-for-SE-Syria---near-US-garrison
The new facility is the first to be established since Moscow's initial military intervention in the Syrian war in September, 2015. debkafile's military
sources say it will provide Russia with a lever of control over the volatile Syrian southeast and its borders, where US-backed and Iranian-backed forces are fighting for dominance. . Russian forces will also stand closer than ever before to the Israeli border
- 85 kilometers from central Golan and 110 kilometers from southern Golan, not far from IDF military positions.
The new Russian foothold will be located strategically 96 kilometers from northern Jordan and 185 kilometers from the American and Jordanian special forces
garrison at the al-Tanf crossing inside the Syrian, Jordanian and Iraqi border triangle.
Placing the new base just 50 kilometers from Damascus serves another primary function, that of securing the strategic crossroads leading from eastern
and southern Syria to the capital - in other words, propping up the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad.
Our intelligence sources note that construction on the new Russian base began concurrently with the resumption his week of secret US-Russian talks in
the Jordanian capital, Amman. They are led by Michael Ratney, the special US envoy for Syrian affairs and Aleksandr Lavrentiev, for Moscow.
There were reports on Thursday, June 22 of a trilateral accord reached between the US, Russia and Jordan for creating a demilitarized zone in southern
Syria, that would also cover the Israeli and Jordanian borders. debkafile sources assert that no such accord has been reached. According to our information, the Russians put on the table a three-part plan for de-conflicting the incendiary situation in southeast
Syria. We can reveal its main points:
1. American forces will continue to hold the al-Tanf crossing. In return, they will agree to Iranian, Syrian and Hizballah forces capturing from ISIS
- and holding - the border town of Abu Kamal, further to the north.
2. Moscow will guarantee the withdrawal of Iranian troops, pro-Iranian militias and Hezbollah forces from southeastern Syria region at some point in the
process.
3. A joint US-Russian administration will be established to conduct the day-to-day affairs of southeastern Syria, including the areas along the Israeli
and Jordanian borders.
Washington has so far turned Moscow down on this plan for two reasons: First, the Syrian army's conquest of Abu Kamal would strengthen Iran's grip on the Syria-Iraq
border area, the prevention of which is a primary US objective. And second, the Americans want Iranian and Hezbollah forces out of the region before any other steps are taken - instead of later, as per the Russian guarantee. This, the Russian negotiators were
not prepared to concede.
Tovah Lazaroff - http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Liberman-Abbas-is-dragging-Israel-into-war-with-Hamas-497607
Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman underlines that Israel has no intention of initiating armed conflict on any frontier.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas will halt all financial payments to Gaza in the future and in so doing
attempt to push Israel into war with Hamas, Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman warned on Thursday morning as he addressed the annual Herzliya Conference.
"I have no intention of initiating any military activity, not in the summer and not in the fall, not in the south and not in the north. Our objective
is to prevent war and the only way to do that is through credible deterrence."
attempt to push Israel into war with Hamas, Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman warned on Thursday morning as he addressed the annual Herzliya Conference.
"I have no intention of initiating any military activity, not in the summer and not in the fall, not in the south and not in the north. Our objective
is to prevent war and the only way to do that is through credible deterrence."
Liberman blamed internal Palestinian politics for creating a humanitarian crisis in Gaza so that its two million residents
have been living on four hours of electricity a day.
"We do not have to enter Gaza forcibly," he said, as a result of the power play between Fatah and Hamas, but that does not mean the crisis would be resolved
anytime soon.
have been living on four hours of electricity a day.
"We do not have to enter Gaza forcibly," he said, as a result of the power play between Fatah and Hamas, but that does not mean the crisis would be resolved
anytime soon.
Israel this week cut the electricity it supplies Gaza from 120 MW to 80 MW, according to the Gaza Electricity Distribution
Company.
Company.
Israel did so at Abbas's request, after he said he would only pay NIS 25 million out of a NIS 40m. bill to Israel Electric
Corporation, which has been Gaza's main provider of electricity over the last two months.
Palestinians in Gaza did not feel the loss because Egypt this week sent diesel fuel into Gaza through the Rafah crossing, something it has not done in
10 years.
The fuel allowed the Gaza power plant to partially resume operations, producing 45 MW of electricity after a two month shutdown.
The Gaza electricity company said the fuel could make it possible for people in the Strip to receive six hours of power a day. The plant closed in April
when it could not pay the onerous tax Abbas had imposed on the diesel fuel for the plant.
Depriving Gaza of electricity is one Abbas's tactics to weaken Hamas, so he can regain control of the Strip a decade after Hamas ousted Fatah in a bloody
coup.
In the last couple of months, Abbas has also stopped sending medication to the Gaza Strip and has cut payments to the governmental employees there.
Such steps are "not a tactic that he plans to use only once," Liberman said as he warned the situation would get worse.
With regard to the electricity, he said Abbas "has not made a one-time reduction. He will continue to reduce payments and to stop payments all together
in a few months both for the fuel and the medicine and payments of [civic salaries]."
Abbas has taken this step unilaterally without consulting Israel, Egypt or Jordan, Liberman said. "He is saying that they are just trying to weaken Hamas."
But the only logical conclusion is that there is a double strategy here in which Abbas is crippling Hamas also out of a hope that "he will drag Hamas into a conflict with Israel."
With regard to Israel's northern border, Liberman warned that Hezbollah was using the Syrian conflict to develop another front against Israel on the Golan
Heights and is increasing its presence along Israel's Lebanese border.
"Hezbollah is making use of the situation to smuggle advanced weapons from Syria to Hezbollah in Lebanon," Liberman said. "I would like to clearly warn
the Syrian regime, which is encouraging Hezbollah and Iran, to turn Syria into a base against Israel."
"The Syrian regime has to take responsibility," Liberman said, adding that arms could not continue to be smuggled to Hezbollah in Beirut.
"The international airport in Damascus cannot be the primary location for smuggling and certainly they cannot provide Hezbollah with weapons.
"We are doing everything in our power to create deterrence," Liberman said adding that at the same time, if action was required Israel would not hesitate
to act.
The United States, Russia and Syria are holding talks with regard to safety zones in that area, he said. But such an agreement would not "prevent our
freedom of action, as "the IDF retains its "freedom of action" if it feels that it needs it "to ensure Israel's security."
Corporation, which has been Gaza's main provider of electricity over the last two months.
Palestinians in Gaza did not feel the loss because Egypt this week sent diesel fuel into Gaza through the Rafah crossing, something it has not done in
10 years.
The fuel allowed the Gaza power plant to partially resume operations, producing 45 MW of electricity after a two month shutdown.
The Gaza electricity company said the fuel could make it possible for people in the Strip to receive six hours of power a day. The plant closed in April
when it could not pay the onerous tax Abbas had imposed on the diesel fuel for the plant.
Depriving Gaza of electricity is one Abbas's tactics to weaken Hamas, so he can regain control of the Strip a decade after Hamas ousted Fatah in a bloody
coup.
In the last couple of months, Abbas has also stopped sending medication to the Gaza Strip and has cut payments to the governmental employees there.
Such steps are "not a tactic that he plans to use only once," Liberman said as he warned the situation would get worse.
With regard to the electricity, he said Abbas "has not made a one-time reduction. He will continue to reduce payments and to stop payments all together
in a few months both for the fuel and the medicine and payments of [civic salaries]."
Abbas has taken this step unilaterally without consulting Israel, Egypt or Jordan, Liberman said. "He is saying that they are just trying to weaken Hamas."
But the only logical conclusion is that there is a double strategy here in which Abbas is crippling Hamas also out of a hope that "he will drag Hamas into a conflict with Israel."
With regard to Israel's northern border, Liberman warned that Hezbollah was using the Syrian conflict to develop another front against Israel on the Golan
Heights and is increasing its presence along Israel's Lebanese border.
"Hezbollah is making use of the situation to smuggle advanced weapons from Syria to Hezbollah in Lebanon," Liberman said. "I would like to clearly warn
the Syrian regime, which is encouraging Hezbollah and Iran, to turn Syria into a base against Israel."
"The Syrian regime has to take responsibility," Liberman said, adding that arms could not continue to be smuggled to Hezbollah in Beirut.
"The international airport in Damascus cannot be the primary location for smuggling and certainly they cannot provide Hezbollah with weapons.
"We are doing everything in our power to create deterrence," Liberman said adding that at the same time, if action was required Israel would not hesitate
to act.
The United States, Russia and Syria are holding talks with regard to safety zones in that area, he said. But such an agreement would not "prevent our
freedom of action, as "the IDF retains its "freedom of action" if it feels that it needs it "to ensure Israel's security."
First Russian base for SE Syria - near US garrison -
http://www.debka.com/article/26114/First-Russian-base-for-SE-Syria---near-US-garrison
The Russian engineering corps has started building a new base in southeastern Syria at a small village called Khirbet
Ras Al-Wa'r in the Bir al-Qasab district. Until now, Moscow adhered to a policy of restricting its military presence to the western part of the country along the Mediterranean coast; no Russian troops were based further east than Palmyra.
Ras Al-Wa'r in the Bir al-Qasab district. Until now, Moscow adhered to a policy of restricting its military presence to the western part of the country along the Mediterranean coast; no Russian troops were based further east than Palmyra.
The new facility is the first to be established since Moscow's initial military intervention in the Syrian war in September, 2015. debkafile's military
sources say it will provide Russia with a lever of control over the volatile Syrian southeast and its borders, where US-backed and Iranian-backed forces are fighting for dominance. . Russian forces will also stand closer than ever before to the Israeli border
- 85 kilometers from central Golan and 110 kilometers from southern Golan, not far from IDF military positions.
The new Russian foothold will be located strategically 96 kilometers from northern Jordan and 185 kilometers from the American and Jordanian special forces
garrison at the al-Tanf crossing inside the Syrian, Jordanian and Iraqi border triangle.
Placing the new base just 50 kilometers from Damascus serves another primary function, that of securing the strategic crossroads leading from eastern
and southern Syria to the capital - in other words, propping up the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad.
Our intelligence sources note that construction on the new Russian base began concurrently with the resumption his week of secret US-Russian talks in
the Jordanian capital, Amman. They are led by Michael Ratney, the special US envoy for Syrian affairs and Aleksandr Lavrentiev, for Moscow.
There were reports on Thursday, June 22 of a trilateral accord reached between the US, Russia and Jordan for creating a demilitarized zone in southern
Syria, that would also cover the Israeli and Jordanian borders. debkafile sources assert that no such accord has been reached. According to our information, the Russians put on the table a three-part plan for de-conflicting the incendiary situation in southeast
Syria. We can reveal its main points:
1. American forces will continue to hold the al-Tanf crossing. In return, they will agree to Iranian, Syrian and Hizballah forces capturing from ISIS
- and holding - the border town of Abu Kamal, further to the north.
2. Moscow will guarantee the withdrawal of Iranian troops, pro-Iranian militias and Hezbollah forces from southeastern Syria region at some point in the
process.
3. A joint US-Russian administration will be established to conduct the day-to-day affairs of southeastern Syria, including the areas along the Israeli
and Jordanian borders.
Washington has so far turned Moscow down on this plan for two reasons: First, the Syrian army's conquest of Abu Kamal would strengthen Iran's grip on the Syria-Iraq
border area, the prevention of which is a primary US objective. And second, the Americans want Iranian and Hezbollah forces out of the region before any other steps are taken - instead of later, as per the Russian guarantee. This, the Russian negotiators were
not prepared to concede.
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