Article

2008-01-02 Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Archived material is restricted to Rantburg regulars and members. If you need access email fred.pruitt=at=gmail.com with your nick to be added to the members list. There is no charge to join Rantburg as a member.

Posted by Steve White 2008-01-02 00:00|| || Front Page|| [8 views ] Top

#1 Sounds like this guy thinks we should base our policy on Russian intel. Sounds like that's what the NIE thinks too. Screw them both.

Posted by Ebbang Uluque6305 2008-01-02 12:31|| 2008-01-02 12:31|| Front Page Top

#2 1. The news source is Iranian, though it's based out of France. I highly doubt they'd quote a Russian who favored sanctions.

2. As flawed and politically-skewed as it is, the NIE wasn't based solely on 'Russian intel', if indeed if any Russian intel was used at all. (It kinda helps if one at least reads the sumamries).

3. Margelov is citing the US' NIE, which is rather the opposite of your remark.

Posted by Pappy 2008-01-02 16:00|| 2008-01-02 16:00|| Front Page Top

#3 So the Russian is quoting the NIE? Or just throwing their report into our faces?

You'll excuse me for being a little confused. After all, I don't work for the CIA. All I know is what I read from publicly available sources and that is confusing as hell when it comes to Iranian nuclear capabilities.

It's just that the conclusion I've come to is either the CIA is lying to us or else they are just as confused as I am.

I'm also getting the suspicion that the Russians know more about it than we do which is why they are so unconcerned and, if so, maybe they shared some of that information with the CIA.

Either that or they are bigger fools than the folks at the CIA.

Anyway, if a guy is holding a gun and threatening to shoot you do you hold endless debates on whether the gun is loaded, whether he really means to shoot or what his Russian friend will do if you shoot him first? No. You shoot him first. And then you terminate the employment of all the idiots at the CIA.

Posted by Ebbang Uluque6305 2008-01-02 19:02|| 2008-01-02 19:02|| Front Page Top