WORLD AT WAR: 12.18.21 - 7 Signs That War With Russia Just Got Even Closer

7 Signs That War With Russia Just Got Even Closer- by Michael Snyder - http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/7-signs-that-war-with-russia-just-got-even-closer/ In this article I am going to write about something that the vast majority of the U.S. population couldn�t care less about. Sadly, most Americans simply do not care aboutUkraine, Russia�s military preparations for war, or pretty much anything else that is happening on the other side of the globe. But over in Russia, things are completely different. There is constant talk about the potential for war with the west, and thereis a lot of pessimism that it will be able to be avoided. To the Russians, this really is the biggest crisis with the west since the Cuban missile crisis of the 1960s. The Russians have repeatedly warned that western missiles mustnot be stationed in Ukraine, and they have repeatedly warned that Ukraine must not become a member of NATO. They are using the same rationale that we used during the Cuban missile crisis. We didn�t want the Russians to have missiles in Cuba that could potentially hit our majorcities within just a matter of a few minutes, and likewise the Russians don�t want missiles in Ukraine that could potentially hit their major cities within just a matter of a few minutes. The only way that Vladimir Putin will ever authorize an invasion of Ukraine is if one of his strategic �red lines� is crossed. But instead of easing tensions and trying to talk things out, western leaders just keep provoking Russia. If they keep on recklessly poking the bear, at some point a mistake will be made and we will have a war that nobody wants. The following are 7 signs that war with Russiajust got even closer� #1 Despite the fact that Vladimir Putin has said that such amove would cross one of his �red lines�, Ukraine was just told that it will eventually be allowed to join NATO� Facing a building threat from Russia, Ukraine�s president sought security guarantees from NATO�s chief in a meeting on Thursday and came away with a renewed commitment thathis country could eventually join the military alliance despite stiff objections from its Russian neighbors. #2 Ukraine has shocked the world by opening up the bomb sheltersin Kiev� Ukraine has opened bomb shelters in the capital of the nation as fears of a Russian invasion soar. On Wednesday a Ukrainian minister and former top spy warned the conflictcould spread globally. #3 ABC�s Martha Raddatz is reporting that after Joe Biden�srecent call with Vladimir Putin, the Russians moved an additional 10,000 troops to the border with Ukraine. #4 The EU is warning of �massive costs for Russia� if thereis any more �aggression� toward Ukraine� �At this point in time, Russia is choosing an aggressive posture vis-�-vis its neighbors. And as the European Union and its G-7 partners have made very clear, further aggressiveacts against Ukraine will have massive costs for Russia,� European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Wednesday. #5 Banks in Belarus are preparing to switch to Russia�s versionof SWIFT due to imminent sanctions by the west� Belarusian banks are preparing for tougher Western sanctions by signing up to Russia�s alternative to the SWIFT, the international financial messaging network that underpinsthe global banking system, Russia�s Moskovsky Komsomolets tabloid has reported. Russia�s System for Transfer of Financial Messages (SPFS) has more than 400 domestic users � practically every licensed Russian lender � but is used by only 38 banks fromnine other countries. Developed in 2014, SPFS is designed to keep banking transactions in the event of Western sanctions disconnecting Russia from SWIFT. #6 It is being reported that Russia �has begun to move Tor short-rangesurface-to-air missile systems to the border area with Ukraine.� #7 A bipartisan group of U.S. Senators wants to formally designateRussia as a �terrorist state�. Needless to say, the Russians are not happy about this� On top of that � as if all that were not incendiary enough � the US Senators want to designate Russia a �terrorist state� if its �forces further invade Ukraine�. Such adesignation of a nuclear superpower is unprecedented. It is an insane move that would make diplomacy and negotiation all but impossible. It�s tantamount to declaring war. We should want to try to find a way to have peace with Russia, but we just keep on moving closer to war. And when war eventually comes, it may be global. Most Americans don�t realize this, but Russia and China just announced a brand new �security alliance�� On Wednesday it was announced that Russia and China had agreed to terms on a security alliance. President Xi said regarding the deal: �At present, certain international forces under the guise of �democracy� and �human rights� are interfering in the internal affairsof China and Russia and brutally trampling on international law and recognised norms of international relations.� So could the U.S. find itself fighting both Russia and China at the same time someday? Yes, that is entirely possible. Meanwhile, European powers are warning that talks to revive the Iranian nuclear deal �are rapidly reaching the end of the road�� A joint statement from Britain, France and Germany issued on Tuesday said �we are rapidly reaching the end of the road� to save the 2015 Iran nuclear deal after the Iranianside accused the West of stoking a �blame game� atmosphere. �Iran�s continued nuclear escalation means that we are rapidly reaching the end of the road,� France�s ambassador to the United Nations, Nicolas de Riviere, announced. Headded that Iran�s consistently blowing past development and uranium enrichment limits all while blaming the US for pulling out of the deal means �We are nearing the point where Iran�s escalation of its nuclear program will have completely hollowed out theJCPOA.� The Israelis have already been practicing for an attack on Iran, and if peace talks collapse it will make a conflict between Israel and Iran inevitable. Of course a new war in the Middle East would give the Biden administration a way to distract us from our growing internal troubles. At this point, only 26 percent of Americansbelieve that the country is headed in the right direction� A new Economist/YouGov Poll shows almost 75% of Americans are either unsure or believe the country is headed in the wrong direction. Only 26% think things are going well. Worse, just 4% believe the economy is �excellent.� Personally, I do not believe that we will see a major war erupt before the end of 2021. But a new year is just weeks away, and I have such a bad feeling about 2022. Over the past couple of years we have been hit with one thing after another, and �the perfect storm� that is now upon us threatens to go to an entirely new level next year. ------------------------------------------------- The latest revelations of Israel’s covert war on Iran – YonahJeremy Bob - https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/the-latest-revelations-of-israels-covert-war-on-iran-analysis-688498 Israel and the Mossad will hit the Islamic Republic when it deems necessary, but it particularly likes to do so juxtaposed to when Tehran has angered the IAEA. Much of what was in Saturday’s New York Times report about Israel’s covert war on Iran’s nuclear program was previously known, but some important new details tie togethersome dots in critical ways. Here are two new takeaways: • Mossad/Israel like to hit Iran when it angers the IAEA Israel and the Mossad will hit the Islamic Republic when it deems necessary, but it particularly likes to do so juxtaposed to when Tehran has angered the IAEA. The latestexample the new report appears to reveal was on September 26. Only weeks before, IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi had celebrated cutting his first new deal with the incoming government of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi. But onSeptember 26, the IAEA leaked that Raisi had reneged on the deal. That same day, the Shahid Hemmat Industrial Group – part of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and of Iran’s Aerospace Industries Organization responsible for Iran’s liquid-fueled ballisticmissile program, including the medium-range Shahab-3 – experienced an explosion and a fire. With Iran’s routine of trying to kill the spread of negative information, it was initially unclear how significant the incident had been, though they mentioned two operativeswere killed. However, by September 27, AP reported the site was the IRGC’s Research and Self-Sufficiency Jihad Organization, which the US Treasury sanctioned in 2017 over its work “researching and developing ballistic missiles.” On September 30, Image Sat. Int’l had revealed additional details about the identity, location and serious impact on the IRGC secret ballistic missile base. The base isconnected to the same ballistic missiles that could be used to mount a nuclear warhead if Iran is able to complete its uranium enrichment. However, explosions have happened quite often around Iran over the last 18 months, and only three incidents have been completely confirmed as sabotage, with Iran accusingthe Mossad. The September 26 incident never led to an accusation by Iran, and unlike in prior instances, not even an anonymous Israel source took credit. Now that sources (potentially Americans trying to deter Israel from continuing) have named Israel as the culprit, it seems apparent that Jerusalem made the decision to hitthe IRGC ballistic missile base after the IAEA leaked Raisi’s reneging on his deal with Grossi. This follows an earlier pattern when on June 19, 2020, the IAEA Board of Governors condemned Iran for the first time since before the JCPOA 2015 nuclear deal. From June 25, 2020, through early August 2020, Iran was hit by a wave of around a dozen unexplained explosions. Some were actual poor infrastructure leading to gas leaksand other accidents, but some, such as the July 2, 2020, hit on Natanz, were a powerful and effective sabotage of the nuclear program. Still unclear is whether the September 26 hit was a “covert strike” by IDF aircraft like the F-35, or possibly by a drone or some other method of attack by the Mossad. • Mossad/Israel have shifted from uranium to weapons development The Mossad and Israel may not have given up on thwarting or slowing Raisi’s rush to complete its uranium enrichment, but at least a strong part of their focus has shiftedto sabotaging weaponization. This is not only clear from the September 26 target being about ballistic missiles. The Times report also emphasizes that Mossad Director David Barnea brought new intelligenceabout Iran’s weapons group. If the Islamic Republic gets to 90%, Jerusalem’s next firewall to stop an Iranian nuclear weapon is to slow and sabotage its weapons group. There is wide debate on how much progress the weapons group has made since 2003, which is the end date of much of the secret nuclear archive that the Mossad seized fromIran in a stunning operation on January 31, 2018. Many US intelligence officials have been leaking that Iran made almost no progress since then. The Mossad agrees that Tehran’s progress slowed once it had to go underground, but has argued that aspects of weaponization – activities ranging from detonation activities,to designing vehicles for ballistic missiles to re-enter Earth’s lower atmosphere, to miniaturization of nuclear warheads – continued clandestinely. This debate will now take on a new level of importance for the Mossad and IDF intelligence, with Iran potentially only weeks from the 90% uranium enrichment weaponizationlevel. -------------------------------------------- Powerful Prophetic Progression - By Terry James - https://www.raptureready.com/2021/12/11/powerful-prophetic-progression-by-terry-james/ When certain developments take place, many who study Bible prophecy comment that prophecy is being fulfilled today. We who watch from the pre-Trib view�that is most of us,I think�believe that, rather than seeing actual fulfillment, we are watching the stage being set for prophetic fulfillment. That is, there is no major prophecy for this pre-Trib era (Church Age) completely fulfilled. But in every direction we look, we seeissues and events of our time arranging for fulfillment. Matters involving the nation of Israel always pique our interest, especially when leaders of Israel�s hostile neighbors say things like recently reported. �We will not back off from annihilation of Israel, even one millimeter.� Brig.-Gen. Abolfazl Shekarchi of the Islamic Republic of Iran�s armed forces recently made that threat during an interview with an Iranian regime-controlled media outlet.He urged the total elimination of the Jewish state. The entire diplomatic world is more than a little concerned about developments with regard to Iran�s nuclear ambitions. However, the main concern seems to be with Israel�sforewarnings about the actions they might take in response to Iranian blustering. The following report frames the problem from Israel�s perspective. Israeli officials believe Iran is weeks away from enriching uranium to a level sufficient for building a nuclear weapon. The amount of uranium Iran has enriched to 20-percent purity is critical because reaching a certain threshold � known as the significant quantity (SQ)�means the stockpilecan rapidly be enriched to the 90-percent purity needed for a nuclear weapon. (�Israeli officials fear Iran could have enough uranium for a nuclear bomb within weeks.� World News Platform) Israeli defense operations made clear the Jewish state�s intentions in light of the existential threat. The head of the Mossad spy agency said Thursday that a bad nuclear deal between world powers and Iran would be �intolerable� for Israel, vowing that the Islamic Republicwill never acquire nuclear weapons. �It�s clear that there�s no need for uranium enriched to 60 percent for civilian purposes,� David Barnea said during a ceremony at the President�s Residence to honor exceptionalMossad agents. �There�s no need for three enrichment sites. There�s no need for thousands of active centrifuges�unless, that is, there is an intention to develop nuclear weapons.�� �Iran will not have nuclear weapons�not in the coming years, not ever. That is my promise; that is Mossad�s promise.�� Asked about plans for a potential strike on Iranian nuclear sites during a rare television interview aired Thursday, [Israeli] Air Force head Maj. Gen. Amikam Norkin saidthe IDF was prioritizing preparations for such a possibility� Norkin compared Israel to an �insurance policy� against Iran obtaining a nuclear bomb. Asked if that insurance policy would need to be exercised, he said: �We�ll do whateveris required.� (�Mossad head vows no Iran nukes� ever,� as credibility of military option scrutinized.� Times of Israel) It has long been almost certain that Israel has, through hacking into Iran�s computer capabilities, thus far been able to halt or slow considerably the regime�s drive toachieve nuclear weapons status. However, progress in that weapons program has apparently reached the point that a literal military strike will be necessary. Israel�s very existence, in terms of human understanding, is at stake. We who believe God�s Word is true�that His chosen nation will never be destroyed�know Iran will never be able to achieve Shekarchi�s desire for the nation�s destruction.But we look at the threat and at developments in Iran�s nuclear program and sense that a major prophecy given by Jeremiah the prophet looks to be shaping for fulfillment. �The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet against Elam, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying, �Thus says the LORD of hosts: �Behold,I will break the bow of Elam, The foremost of their might. Against Elam I will bring the four winds from the four quarters of heaven, And scatter them toward all those winds; There shall be no nations where the outcasts of Elam will not go'� (Jeremiah 49:34�36). The area that includes the bulk of Iran�s nuclear facilities is the Bushehr mountains of the geographical region of Elam, as given in biblical terms. Our good friend, Bill Salus, has done tremendous research and authored a number of books on the end times and the Middle East. In his book, Nuclear Showdown in Iran, The Ancient Prophecy of Elam, Bill summarizes with the following: Jeremiah 49:34�36 predicts a coming disaster to the western central portion of Iran where the ancient territory of Elam existed. The magnitude of this tragedy will createa massive worldwide dispersion of the affected population. It may turn out to be a humanitarian crisis of epic proportion. Among those being scattered will be Christians looking for the opportunity to depart from Iran in order to preach the gospel worldwide. The IRGC will be struck hard at the heart of its military might. This attack appears to minimize the IRGC�s ability to respond effectively. The strategic targets might includeIran�s nuclear program, which could result in an unprecedented nuclear catastrophe. In a late-breaking development, Amir Tsarfati reports from Tel Aviv that Iran, on Friday or Saturday of the past week, experienced a massive explosion at one of its nucleardevelopment facilities. The area is apparently being cleared of those who live there because of possibly dangerous emissions from the destruction. Amir indicated that speculation is that a drone strike might have been responsible. Personally, I believe that such a catastrophic fulfillment as predicted by Jeremiah the prophet won�t take place until after the Rapture of the Church. But with things shapingup as they are in such dramatic fashion, I think it�s wise to take Jesus� words to heart as never before. �And when you see all these things begin to come to pass, then look up and lift up your heads, for your redemption is drawing near� (Luke 21:28). ------------------------------ 'Onewrong move': Tehran Times reveals Iran's targets in Israel � Tzvi Joffre - https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/tehran-times-publishes-targets-iran-will-attack-in-israel-688785 A "rocket alert" map displaying a list of targets Iran would strike including pins in Lebanese territory and on Palestinian cities. An Iranian newspaper published a map on Wednesday threatening Israel with missile attacks. The map shows pins representing rocket alerts for dozens of potential targets,including Lebanese territory and Palestinian cities in the West Bank. The map, published on the front page of the Tehran Times, was part of an article headlined �Just one wrong move!� �An intensification of the Israeli military threats against Iran seems to suggest that the Zionist regime has forgotten that Iran is more than capable of hitting them fromanywhere,� wrote the paper, adding it �doesn�t need to remind the illegitimate regime of Israel of Iran�s defense capabilities.� The article ended with a 2013 quote by Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei warned that Iran would �destroy Tel Aviv and Haifa� if Israel �makes a mistake� and conducts amilitary strike. The threat comes as Israel and the US advance preparations for a military option should negotiations in Vienna to return to the JCPOA nuclear deal fail. A massive IDF drillmimicking a strike on Iran is reportedly planned for next year. Despite the threat being directed toward Israel, the map shows potential targets over the border with Lebanon and on what appear to be Jenin and Nablus. Ramallah and Hebron also seem to be in Iran�s list of retaliatory targets should Israel conduct a strike against the Islamic Republic. Iran, it is suggested, would also fire missiles toward a slew of empty areas in the Negev Desert, although it is unclear why they would do so. The map does avoid the Gaza Strip, however, focusing red pins along the borders of the coastal enclave. If Iran were to fire on Palestinian cities, it would not be the first time the so-called �Axis of Resistance� (a name used by Iran and its proxies for their alliance) hashit Palestinian towns and cities in the West Bank. During Operation Guardian of the Walls in May, a rocket fired from Gaza by Hamas landed near the Palestinian town of Azun in the West Bank. Hamas claimed at the time thatthe rocket was aimed toward the Israeli city of Modi�in, located some 30 kilometers south of Azun. During Operation Protective Edge in 2014, multiple rockets were fired toward the West Bank, with one rocket landing near Hebron and another near Bethlehem. --------------------------- Israel Prepares For Possible Backroom Betrayal In US-Iran Talks � Jonathan Tobin - https://www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=5119 It's a classic case of good news and bad news. The good news refers to reports that the United States appears to be backing off on its plans to reopen the Jerusalem consulateto the Palestinians that was shuttered when former President Donald Trump moved the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to the Israeli capital in 2018. The bad news is that if that is true, it may be more a function of the Americans realizing that it's not in their interests to be fighting the Israeli government on twofronts rather than just one. Meaning, if President Joe Biden is, at least for now, not going to make good on his promise to the Palestinian Authority to compromise Israeli sovereignty over its capital, it's because he is preparing for a major fracas with PrimeMinister Naftali Bennett over the Iran nuclear threat. The problem with monitoring the U.S.-Israel relationship these days is that while some of the action is out in the open, the most important things happening are most likelygoing on behind the scenes. That's par for the course in international diplomacy. The problem for Israel, however, is that while Jerusalem is sending both public and private messages to its American ally about the dangers of being led down the gardenpath by the Iranians into another disaster like the 2015 nuclear deal, it may be that they are being kept out of the loop when it comes to contacts between Washington and Tehran. The loudest Israeli message to the Biden administration was sounded by Defense Minister Benny Gantz during his appearance last week at the Israeli-American National CouncilSummit in Hollywood, Fla. Gantz said that he had notified his counterparts in the U.S. government that he had ordered the Israel Defense Forces to prepare for a strike on Iran's nuclear facilities. This is far from the first indication that Israel is stepping up preparations for acting on its own to prevent Iran from attaining the status of a nuclear power. But forGantz to come out and openly speak of IDF planning in such an open manner was a strong message. Clearly, the Iranians took it as a threat to their facilities and their quest for a nuclear weapon. And they answered it within days with threats of their own, includinghaving one of the regime's press organs--the English-language Tehran Times--publish a map showing dozens of potential targets for Iranian strikes on the Jewish state under the caption of "Just One Wrong Move!" The real intended audience for Gantz's saber-rattling, however, wasn't the theocrats running Iran. It was mainly intended as a warning to Israel's American allies that theyshould understand that for Israel, Iran moving closer to the status of a nuclear threshold state is an existential threat as opposed to a mere security concern. As the most recent New York Times compendium of leaks from the highly placed sources in the American government shows, the era of good feelings between the Biden administrationand Israel's coalition government may be on thin ice. The shaky alliance of right-, center and left-wing parties has done everything possible to make nice with Biden and his foreign-policy team in the hopes that they could influence U.S. attitudes towardsIran. The spectacular failures of the American approach to Tehran are obvious. Iran has refused to re-enter the weak nuclear deal negotiated by the Obama administration in 2015--officiallycalled the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)--and has instead begun to move towards a nuclear bomb, all the while also rejecting Washington's diplomatic overtures at multiple bursts of talks in Vienna since April. Biden and the Democrats place all of the blame for this dismal state of affairs on Trump for withdrawing from the nuclear deal and trying to force Iran to negotiate an agreementthat would actually forestall an Iranian nuke, which the JCPOA couldn't accomplish since the sunset clauses in it would have eventually given the rogue regime a legal path to a weapon. This claim ignores the fact that most of the rapid progress that the Iranians have made with respect to uranium enrichment took place after Biden took office. At that point,Tehran no longer had to worry about antagonizing Trump, who was eager to further tighten sanctions on them and drag America's reluctant European allies along with him. The administration has been making some noises of its own about the possibility that they will have to come up with some sort of "Plan B" after diplomacy inevitably fails.But the Israelis already know that the American response to Iran's refusal to negotiate seriously was to back down and offer them a weaker temporary deal in exchange for some sanctions relief. While Biden's team claims this is now off the table after the Iraniansblew off the talks, which were slated to resume with a sputter on Nov. 29, the Israelis are right to be skeptical of these assurances. So it was significant that the Times article alluded to the very real possibility that both the Israelis and the American public may be in the dark about the administration'sactions. If, as the Times reports, the Israelis fear that the United States is currently conducting secret back-channel diplomatic discussions with Iran that will lead to renewedpublic negotiations, whose outcome will be a pre-ordained surrender of Western interests, then they have good reason to think so. That's what happened nine years ago when President Barack Obama was conducting his successful re-election campaign in 2012. During his foreign-policy debate with Republicanpresidential nominee Mitt Romney, Obama promised that any nuclear agreement with Iran would mean the end of Tehran's nuclear program. But he was already planning on ignoring that pledge. Senior White House Advisor Valerie Jarrett was conducting backchannel talks with the Iranians and preparing the way for a deal that would contradict Obama's avowals. Bythe time new talks had convened in 2013, the Western slide to surrender to Iranian demands was a fait accompli. While Jarrett is no longer on the federal payroll, most of the same cast of characters that were running foreign policy for Obama are doing the same for Biden. There's everyreason to believe that when their obsession for diplomacy for its own sake is stymied, their reaction will be to again double down on appeasement rather than honestly confront their mistakes and seek a different course. The Israelis know their window for both attempts to influence Biden and/or to take action on their own may be closing. Once the United States and Iran are back in Viennaand moving towards concluding another nuclear pact that won't actually stop Iran's march to a nuclear weapon, it may be too late for the Israelis to act. Just as troubling is the likelihood that the Americans aren't taking Gantz's threats seriously. They know how difficult a military campaign to take out Iran's nuclear facilitieswould be even with the much greater forces that the United States can bring to bear on the problem than Israel. And, as the Israelis are finding out, American opposition to Israeli action can be made clear in ways other than diplomatic exchanges. As the Times later reported, the Americans are stalling on delivering new refueling tanker planes that will be needed if Israel is to attack Iran. That won't impact eventsin the short term. But it is, at the very least, a symbolic gesture intended to warn the Jewish state to defer to Washington, even if it means sacrificing their defense interests. At this stage, no one on either side of the alliance knows what the next move on Iran will be. But, if Israel's all-too-realistic fears about an American secret betrayalprove justified, future protests about Biden's policies may be a waste of time. VISIT: PROPHECY WATCHER WEEKLY NEWS: HTTP://PROPHECY-WATCHER-WEEKLY-NEWS.BLOGSPOT.COM