Posted on 10/27/2004 7:11:06 PM PDT by The G Man
Nothing further. Freaking Russians ...
I think I saw that NYT is going to run yet another front page article on the "missing explosives", so my guess is the Kerry campaign will go yet another day pounding Bush for not guarding the explosives (in essence blaming the military, but the dems don't see it that way). I bet they do run with the same story tomorrow.
It would make sense. He knows his only check on power is US, and he knows he needs us. Doing this for Bush greatly increases his latitude in pursuing his interests.
Congressman Billybob
You might also add that it is possible that Kerry knows the back story due to his Senate duties, and that he chose to mislead the public in the current news cycle, hoping that the Bush camp couldn't effectively defend itself because the truth is classified. I am not saying that he absolutely did so, but it is a possibility that fits the rest of your scenario.
Here's an even better article. Talks specifically about Russian official with expertise in WMD and weapons clean-up being in Iraq days before outbreak of the war:
http://www.peterlevine.ws/iraqblog/archives/000141.html
Here is a quote:
"The Soviet bloc not only sold Saddam its WMDs, but it showed them how to make them "disappear." Russia is still at it. Primakov was in Baghdad from December until a couple of days before the war, along with a team of Russian military experts led by two of Russia's topnotch "retired"generals: Vladislav Achalov, a former deputy defense minister, and Igor Maltsev, a former air defense chief of staff. They were all there receiving honorary medals from the Iraqi defense minister. They clearly were not there to give Saddam military advice for the upcoming war—Saddam's Katyusha launchers were of World War II vintage, and his T-72 tanks, BMP-1 fighting vehicles and MiG fighter planes were all obviously useless against America. 'I did not fly to Baghdad to drink coffee,' was what Gen. Achalov told the media afterward. They were there orchestrating Iraq's "Sarindar" plan."
Please ping all who might be interested. Someone might want to send this to Drudge.
Yeah and I'll help them pack too!
"Do you think Putin will admit it in the days to come? Talk about a SURPRISE."
Don't know...but it wont stop Putin from providing more weapons and training to the rest of our current list of enemies. Russia IS the MAIN enemy (Red China is way up on the list as well).
Again--the Russian Embassy told the Financial Times this story was "nonsense." Would Putin say different?
And from the Gertz article:
The Russian arms-removal program was initiated after Yevgeny Primakov, the former Russian intelligence chief, could not convince Saddam to give in to U.S. and Western demands, this official said.
A small portion of Iraq's 650,000 tons to 1 million tons of conventional arms that were found after the war were looted after the U.S.-led invasion, Mr. Shaw said. Russia was Iraq's largest foreign supplier of weaponry, he said.
However, the most important and useful arms and explosives appear to have been separated and moved out as part of carefully designed program. "The organized effort was done in advance of the conflict," Mr. Shaw said.
Convoluted and does indeed make some sense, but I still have trouble seeing Russia in bed with Islamists after what they've gone through in Chechnya. Then again, Saddam wasn't an Islamist...he just made common cause with them against the Great Satan. Hell, Saddam killed more of *his own* Islamist whackjobs between 1979 and 2003 than we probably ever will.
It's just damned shortsighted on the Russians' part, though. Maybe, like you said, they figured that Iraq was a useful partner (and they certainly were economically) and that Saddam would not turn on them or provide aid and support to the Chechens and their allies.
If the Russian government was involved in this, and not just private or rogue concerns in Russia, then this is hugh. We've always felt that Pootie Poot was dealing with Saddam behind our back while blocking us in the Security Council again and again, we just couldn't prove it. Now, we're finding out that not only was he protecting his own economic interests, and protecting his own slush funds from Oil-For-Bribes, maybe he was also actually helping the Iraqis move weapons of slightly-less-than-mass-if-you're-a-Democrat destruction out of Iraq and away from us. That is BIG.
}:-)4
Amazing article... THANKS!!
"Given the stunned reaction of Bush, I'd say you're right on the money. Kerry was letting state secrets fly, on television, with the whole nation watching."
- To prove your theory, you'd have to go back to the tapes of the first debate and see what was the subject under discussion at the time and what Kerry then said which appeared to upset and piss off Bush. If it was something on the weapons topic, Kerry is doomed.
But make sure they still have computers so they can still post and entertain us.
"The most reasoned post yet."
Sorry, never did know how to deal with flattery. But thanks for the bump!!!
Okay, you all might think I made this up but about a year ago a friend that worked in a high command position in Iraq before/during/after the war told me about all of these weapons being moved out of the country and which countries they went to. Talked about it with him several times as why they would not release this kind of intel (According to him they know pretty much what/where etc.) to the public or why they didn't destroy these truck columns. His response was "What do you do if you hit something big and it REALLY goes BOOM??!!!!".
I never could figure out what was going on behind the scenes etc. etc.. Now with us releasing the russian involvment it makes sense...
But what's going on with the game within the game????? LOL... this is better then Clancy... lol...
Putin did kinda sorta endorse W a week ago.
Same here.
Sure..I love pop-tarts. Strawberry is my favorite, but I'll eat any filling.
Don't just read it...spread it around!!!
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