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Iran's Axis of Nuclear Evil
WSJ ^ | MARCH 21, 2009 | JOHN BOLTON

Posted on 03/21/2009 12:24:45 PM PDT by nuconvert

By JOHN BOLTON

While President Obama's unanticipated Nowruz holiday greeting to Iran generated considerable press attention, his video wasn't really this week's big news related to the Islamic Republic. Far more important was that a senior defector -- Iran's former Deputy Minister of Defense Ali Reza Asghari -- disclosed Tehran's financing of Syria's nuclear weapons program. That program's centerpiece was a North Korean nuclear reactor in Syria. Israel destroyed it in September 2007.

At this point, it is impossible to ignore Iran's active efforts to expand, improve and conceal its nuclear weapons program in Syria while it pretends to "negotiate" with Britain, France and Germany (the "EU-3"). No amount of video messages will change this reality. The question is whether this new information about Iran will sink in, or if Washington will continue to turn a blind eye toward Iran's nuclear deceptions.

That the Pyongyang-Damascus-Tehran nuclear axis went undetected and unacknowledged for so long is an intelligence failure of the highest magnitude. It represents a plain unwillingness to allow hard truths to overcome well-entrenched policy views disguised as intelligence findings.

Key elements of our intelligence community (IC) fought against the idea of a Syrian nuclear program for years. In mid-2003, I had a bitter struggle with several IC agencies -- news of which was leaked to the press -- concerning my testimony before the House Foreign Affairs Committee about the Syrian program. Then Sen. Joe Biden made the Syria testimony an issue in my 2005 confirmation battle to become ambassador to the United Nations, alleging that I had tried to hype concern about Syria's nuclear intentions. (In fact, my testimony, in both its classified and unclassified versions, was far more anodyne than the facts warranted.)

(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...


TOPICS: Editorial; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: ambassadorbolton; bho44; bhoiran; bolton; iran; iraniannukes; johnbolton; nukes; syria; tm

1 posted on 03/21/2009 12:24:46 PM PDT by nuconvert
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Slow Joe Biden, wrong again


2 posted on 03/21/2009 12:28:02 PM PDT by nuconvert ( Khomeini promised change too // Hail, Chairman O)
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To: nuconvert

John Bolton is a Patriot. I’d nominate him to a VP slot in a heartbeat. He would be a mirror of VP Cheney IMHO....


3 posted on 03/21/2009 12:58:06 PM PDT by oust the louse (This Country now has a smelly BO problem.....)
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To: nuconvert

4 posted on 03/21/2009 1:03:28 PM PDT by G8 Diplomat (I'm learning Arabic, Farsi, Urdu, Pashtu, and Russian so someday you won't have to)
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To: All

A Look at Iran
http://www.truthusa.com/IRAN.html


5 posted on 03/21/2009 1:09:45 PM PDT by Cindy
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To: Jet Jaguar; backhoe; piasa; Oorang; Velveeta; Godzilla
Ping.

SNIPPET from the link in post no. 1:

"There is very little time for Mr. Obama to change course before he is committed to negotiations. He could start by following Iran's money trail."

6 posted on 03/21/2009 1:14:05 PM PDT by Cindy
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To: Cindy

0bama is only going to get someone killed with an Iranian nuke.


7 posted on 03/21/2009 1:18:48 PM PDT by Godzilla (If the first step in an argument is wrong everything that follows is wrong. ~C.S. Lewis, The Problem)
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To: nuconvert

bumping and marking for later read.


8 posted on 03/21/2009 1:20:28 PM PDT by Dinah Lord (fighting the Islamofascist Jihad - one keystroke at a time...)
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To: nuconvert
Pyongyang-Damascus-Tehran nuclear axis went undetected and unacknowledged for so long is an intelligence failure of the highest magnitude

The Ambassador is saying the Axis of Evil (same triangle) was ignored? By whom? Who's intelligence failure? Certainly not that of President Bush. It shows the terrible crime Intelligence Agencies committed by undermining the last administration at every possible turn.

9 posted on 03/21/2009 1:24:45 PM PDT by Prospero (non est ad astra mollis e terris via)
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To: Godzilla

OPINION: BO and his administration does seem to be willfully ignorant as to how our enemies operate.


10 posted on 03/21/2009 1:33:46 PM PDT by Cindy
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To: Cindy

Oh how I wish the adults were in charge.


11 posted on 03/21/2009 3:42:27 PM PDT by Oorang (Tyranny thrives best where government need not fear the wrath of an armed people - Alex Kozinski)
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To: Oorang

Yes.


12 posted on 03/21/2009 3:48:35 PM PDT by Cindy
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To: nuconvert

bump. scary stuff especially with that idiot as potus.


13 posted on 03/31/2009 3:41:37 PM PDT by dervish (most terrifying words in the English language "I'm from the government and I'm here to help" Reagan)
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