Posted on 11/24/2012 10:21:24 PM PST by Nachum
For the entire 8 day duration of Operation Pillar of Defense, there was one major geopolitical player who had been largely quiet and certainly absent from the scene: the same player whose unflinching position over the Syria conflict has so far prevented any intervention in the civil war torn country: Russia. The same Russia which has a military base in the Syrian port city of Tarsus, and thus in its own eyes, a very substantial "national interest" role to play in the middle east, one that is certainly opposing that of the US and the pro-NATO forces, a tension that will surely boil to the surface now that war between Iran and Israel is always at most "hours away" depending on who is asked, and which one day will be more than just a war of words. Today, Russia decided that it had kept quiet for too long over the Gaza conflict, with Voice of Russia reporting, courtesy of Al Arabiya, that Russian warships anchored off the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea will be put on military alertness should the conflict in Gaza escalate and brought in proximity, according Russian Navy Command source on Friday.
Sure enough, there is a diplomatic reason for the escalation: evacuation preparedness. To wit: "The detachment of combat ships of the Black Sea Fleet, including the Guards missile cruiser Moskva, the patrol ship Smetliviy, large landing ships Novocherkassk and Saratov, the sea tug MB-304 and the big sea tanker Ivan Bubnov, got the order to remain in the designated area of the Eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea for a possible evacuation of Russian citizens from the area of the Gaza strip in case of escalation of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict”, the spokesperson said. He added that ship crew members will continue routine combat training
(Excerpt) Read more at zerohedge.com ...
The list, Ping
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The list, Ping
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Nominally to get Rooskies out of there should the SHTF, but more sinister things could easily be envisioned.
The Russians know only too well that Obama is a chickensh*t with his head buried in his *ss.
Our dwindling influence in world affairs is going right out the window with our economy, our national credibility, and our freedoms.
In another four years, we won’t even be a player in global politics; it’ll be all Russia and China, and they know it, too.
The Russian Navy vessels are now in the Northern Aegean Sea. Preparing to transit back into the Black Sea. See my last post on following.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2962377/posts
This following position is from the International weather Morse Code transmission, 6 December during 12 UTC.
Russian Navy Tanker Ivan Bubnov
12464 RCV DE RCJG 06121 99385 10253 22232 @1215 UTC
38.5N 25.3E Heading South East at 6-10 Knots
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