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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Rice says US has no plans for intervention in Iran today
2005-01-30
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has assured the German government that the United States has no plans for military intervention in Iran, according to a report Saturday. Rice issued the assurances to German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer in Washington this past week, said the report in Der Spiegel news magazine. Fischer also elicited a verbal assurance from Rice that she supports diplomatic efforts by Germany, France and Britain to resolve the standoff over Iran's purported nuclear programmefor now.
"You boys keep talking for now whilst we get things lined up at our end, 'k?"
But she categorically rejected any US participation in those diplomatic talks. Ahead of President George W. Bush's visit to Germany, on February 23, Rice said the US Administration would welcome a more positive attitude from Berlin toward the election in Iraq. Rice, who will be in Berlin this coming week, was quoted as having said that any statement which could be construed as being critical of the voter turnout or of the fairness of the election would be viewed by Washington as hindering the democratisation process in Iraq.

In Washington last Tuesday, Fischer conferred with Rice for 90 minutes at the White House. Afterward, Fischer said only that the American and European positions on Iran are "not far apart". Iran has denied US accusations that it is using its nuclear programme to build weapons, but the United States has threatened to take the issue to the U.N. Security Council if Iran does not better cooperate with international inspections. The Germans opposed a referral during a gathering of the International Atomic Energy Agency's board of governors last year.
Posted by:Steve White

#7  You could get a fair idea from Global Security's Target: Iran page... if Mikey agreed, of course. I'm sure Mikey knows far more than John Pike, so this is clearly rubbish. Mikey's a connected guy. Pike's a piker.

You might find the countdown clock interesting, too, if Mikey agreed. Rubbish. Bad clock. Bad.
Posted by: .com   2005-01-30 7:27:00 PM  

#6  Der Spiegel is rabidly anti-American,so I don't trust their reporting. For the US to have no plans for dealing w/Iran is ridiculous. Of course there are contingency plans,and I would imagine somewhere a planning cell or two is updating them. Now there may be no current intentions of intervening in Iran,but that could change at a moments notice.
Posted by: Stephen   2005-01-30 7:18:27 PM  

#5  When I level a sand pile, I don't call that "intervenion" either.
Posted by: Tom   2005-01-30 11:54:32 AM  

#4  I'd bet that there is no specific 'numbered' Oplan yet too. However, since planning of any such operation is the responsibility of CENTCOM not State or even the Pentagon [IAW the Goldwater-Nichols Act], that a certain amount of data collection and resource projections are being done as normal staff work just to be ahead of any prep curve when the word does come down.
Posted by: Crereper Thomble7321   2005-01-30 10:32:00 AM  

#3  Make no mistake, there is a "red line" here. Right now the US would prefer to let the EU-3 come to the realization for themselves that they are fooling themselves to think Iran is going to abide by the NPT or any other obligation.
Posted by: Duke Nukem   2005-01-30 10:08:45 AM  

#2  
.... the United States has no plans for military intervention in Iran .... Rice ... supports diplomatic efforts by Germany, France and Britain to resolve the standoff over Iran’s purported nuclear programme

The plain truth.
.
Posted by: Mike Sylwester   2005-01-30 9:27:43 AM  

#1  Now, being inveterate liars themselves, the mullas are really scared
Posted by: gromgorru   2005-01-30 8:33:06 AM  

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