KEEP FR GOING STRONG
Dear Friends, Please keep those donations coming in.
We depend on your continuing support to keep FR on the air.
If you have not yet made your donation,
please click the link and do so today.
Thank you very much.
Posted on 04/16/2015 5:54:53 PM PDT by markomalley
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that Iran's willingness and flexibility in trying to find a solution with the West over its nuclear program had spurred his decision to lift a 2010 ban to deliver an S-300 missile defense system to Tehran, adding that the advanced Russian unit would not pose a threat to Israel.
But the president, in his annual televised call-in show, said Russia would still work "as one" with its partners in the United Nations over Iran and that deliveries of the S-300 would work as a deterrent in the Middle East.
"And now with the progress of the Iranian nuclear track – and that is obviously positive – we do not see any reason to continue to keep the ban (on the delivery of the S-300) unilaterally," he said.
He said Iran should be rewarded for showing "a great degree of flexibility and a desire to reach compromise" in the talks and stressed said the S-300 is a defensive weapon that shouldn't pose any threat to Israel, and may in fact serve as "a deterrent factor in connection with the situation in Yemen."
Putin said that Russia would continue to cooperate with its international partners on negotiating a definitive nuclear deal with Iran. He argued that the international sanctions against Iran still in place don't ban the delivery of the S-300, which Russia had halted voluntarily.
He argued that Russia remains open for overcoming the current tensions with the West, but warned Washington that it should stop treating Moscow as an inferior partner if it wants good ties.
"The main condition is to have respect for Russia and its interests," he said, adding that the United States "doesn't need allies, they need vassals."
Putin said that despite the frictions with the West, "we don't see anyone as enemy," adding that "we don't recommend anyone to see us as enemy."
The president focused heavily on economic issues during the show, a slickly produced hours-long annual affair intended to burnish his image.
He said the nation's economic performance has remained strong, despite Western sanctions slapped on Russia over the Ukrainian crisis and a slump in global oil prices. He pointed at the ruble's recovery as a sign of a renewed investor confidence in Russia.
Putin, whose approval ratings top 80 percent despite the recession, said the country can overcome any challenges if it remains united.
"If we preserve a stable situation in domestic politics, preserve the current consolidation of society, we shouldn't fear any threats," he said.
Official estimates are that Russia's economy will shrink by 3 to 5 percent this year in its steepest decline since Putin took office 15 years ago, but Putin said the slump would likely be less significant.
He also criticized Ukraine, accusing it of violating its obligations under February's peace deal by maintaining an economic blockade on rebellious eastern regions, refusing to deliver pensions and other social payments to people in the east, and shutting financial services to the region.
Putin argued that the Ukrainian leadership is effectively cutting off the eastern regions from the rest of the country. At the same time, the Russian president insisted that he remains committed to cooperating with the Ukrainian president to overcome the crisis, adding that the Minsk agreement signed in February provides the only way out of it.
He reaffirmed a strong denial of Ukrainian and Western claims that Russia has sent troops to back the rebels in eastern Ukraine.
"There are no Russian troops in Ukraine," he said.
When a jittery resident of areas in southwestern Russia near the border with Ukraine asked him if they should fear a war, Putin answered with a categoric 'no.' "You live in calm," he said.
Asked about the killing of Nemtsov, who was shot dead just outside the Kremlin on Feb. 27, Putin praised Russian law-enforcement agencies for nabbing the suspected perpetrators, but said he doesn't know if it will be possible to track down the mastermind.
The five suspects, all Chechens, have remained in custody. Observers say their arrest has highlighted tensions between Russian law-enforcement agencies and Chechnya's Kremlin-backed strongman, Ramzan Kadyrov.
It sure seems like everyone got together and said, "Let's make Israel fire the first shot..."
One day this nut-job is threatening the use of his nukes, and the next he’s telling other nations they shouldn’t see his nation as an enemy.
That is pure nut-job territory.
His S300 missiles will not be a threat? Well in the sense that they won’t be offensive sure, but they are none the less a way to protect offensive weapons. So yes, they are a threat.
If you can’t protect yourself from nukes because of them, they are certainly a threat. They affect the balance of power in the region.
Russia has gone rogue. Putin is nothing more than a Stalin or a Lenin. He’s one of Russia’s most dangerous leaders in the last 50 years, perhaps longer.
Before those S300s become operational, Israel needs to do just that IMO.
Easy access to Iran’s nuclear operations is being closed down.
It’s time.
This is the endgame. Don't know if it happens now, or a thousand years from now, but this is the strategy.
IMO, I think the suicidal move here is to allow Iran to have nuclear weapons.
Whether they have them in three months or ten years, they day they have them the Middle East will never be the same.
It has already changed in that a number of other nations are now seeking nukes.
Putin is as short-sighted as Obama these days. Islamic terrorists target Moscow. And so what does Putin do? He fronts for an Islamic state that is known to be the supporter of terrorists and helps them get the bomb.
Putin’s own nation stands to be a likely first-strike of any nuclear weapons Iran develops.
Putin isn’t short-sighted. It’s a matter of strategy. Iran is an ally of Russia, and Russia has been helping them for years with their nuclear program. Russia is not afraid of Iran because they know who Iran will be fighting a war with— Israel and the United States.
Iran is Islamic. The Chechnyans are Islamic.
Yes, Russia has been helping Iran thanks to Jimmy Carter who transitioned Iran into a Russian ally from a Western ally.
The technology that Iran develops, will be given to terrorist groups. That information will proliferate across the region.
There will be payoffs. Technology and hard objects will be transferred to terrorists.
Iran has no control over where those things will go. What’s more, it doesn’t care as long as it doesn’t blow up on it’s soil.
This will make international arms control almost impossible to effect.
Chechnya is also under control through Putin's puppet dictator Kadyrov. Russia has a long history of using Islamic terrorism for its ends.
Well, it’s a mistake for him to play ball with terrorist groups.
At the same time Obama has advisers from the Muslim Brotherhood. McCain and he act as if there is a good Al Qaeda.
So how do we trash Putin for exploiting terrorists for his own benefit, when we do the same thing?
The question wasn’t, is there a good or bad Al Qaeda. The question was, do you appear to utilize terrorist to your own end. And If you do, how can you trash someone else for doing it?
This is why our strategy on Syria was so misguided.
Let Assad and the terrorists duke it out. Quit thinking you can obtain a reasoned outcome from dealing with terrorists.
I think there’s a very good chance we funded and armed the inception of ISIS.
Nobody had clean enough hands in this to form a relationship with. The same thing took place in Libya. We probably helped destabilize Egypt as well.
We are very lucky Egypt is a stable as it is right now. I think it’s fair to say that may change again. We’ll have to wait and see.
Iran causing the trouble it has, may in fact keep Egypt in line. It may need Israel to come to it’s rescue at some point if things get dicey after Iran gets the bomb.
“Trust me” he said, with the most evil grin one could imagine.
Shut up, Vlad. Just shut the hell up.
Do we do the same thing? I think you overplay your claims. Do you have evidence of the U.S. conspiring with and controlling terrorist groups in the middle east?
The U. S. funded and armed terrorist groups in Libya.
It did it in Syria.
I’m pretty sure that is on the record.
In Syria it was known to be Al Qaeda.
Isn’t that conspiring with terrorist groups?
Seems like it to me.
Since it's on the record, can you please provide links or documentation (preferably not from a fringe conspiracy website) that names who and what we funded in detail?
...”The U. S. funded and armed terrorist groups in Libya....It did it in Syria....I’m pretty sure that is on the record.”....
Oh my gosh yes...just go to the State Dept. site or the Government sites...it’s all there.
Whew. Putin has reassured me. I feel better now.
Watch out when boxes of blank Russian passports show up in your neighborhood.
S-300 deliveries hurt Iran
There are much more dangerous and damaging solutions to the Iran problem than bunker busters.
“He said Iran should be rewarded for showing “a great degree of flexibility and a desire to reach compromise” in the talks and stressed said the S-300 is a defensive weapon that shouldn’t pose any threat to Israel, and may in fact serve as “a deterrent factor in connection with the situation in Yemen.””
Contrast thiis Putin statement with Putin’s reaction to the proposed deployment of a limited ABM system for Eastern Europe where Putin basically refused the same ‘defensive weapon’ charactarization.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.