Russian airstrikes destroy 472 terrorist targets in Syria in 48 hours, 1,000 oil tankers in 5 days

RT ^ | 11-23-2015 | RT

[tcrlaf]

Russian airstrikes have torched more than 1,000 tankers taking stolen crude oil to Islamic State refineries. This blow against the jihadists comes as the Russian Air Force has hit 472 terrorist targets in two days in Syria, making 141 sorties.

All Russian aircraft have successfully returned to the Khmeimim airbase near Latakia, Major General Igor Konashenkov, spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry, said in a daily briefing.

[CPT Clay]

Maybe they shouldn’t have blowed up that airliner.

[Made In The USA]

I like the ‘eyeball guy’ watching Soetero. Bonus points for him if he was ‘lock-stare’ for the duration, renting out space in Barry’s head).

[JEDI4S]

I believe Greta is Buckwheats’ transitional trial name.

:-)

They are not all ISIS targets. I think the Rooskies are hitting anything that even remotely looks like a jihadi.

Their bombing and killing anything that is even close.

[ETL]

Ted Cruz on ISIS, Russia, Obama, missile defense, and the New START Treaty with Russia...

"If we want to actually dismantle ISIS, we need to dramatically change course. We need a real, robust campaign that maximizes our overwhelming air advantage.

We need to focus our efforts not on trying to create friends, but on supporting our real ones, especially the Kurds in Iraq and Syria who have actually had success against ISIS."

-snip-

"We can redouble our efforts to develop the defensive weapons that neutralized the offensive Soviet threat -- particularly missile defense, which has seen a 25% budget reduction under Obama, according to an analysis from the conservative Heritage Foundation, and has been constrained by bad arms deals like New START.

We should not only move quickly to install the canceled interceptor sites Putin opposed in Poland and the Czech Republic, but also to develop the next generation of systems that will only increase his discomfiture.

These options do not entail a ground war in Syria, yet would effectively shake us free from the failed policies that have brought us to our current impasse.

These options set us on a new path that puts Putin on notice that the United States is reclaiming our traditional role as leader of the free world."

http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/09/opinions/cruz-syria-putin/index.html

**********************************************************

"I think it would be a mistake to get involved in the Syrian civil war. There have been voices in Washington eager for us to send our sons and daughters over to fight that civil war for some time. I haven't been one of them. I think the touchstone of U.S. military policy should be protecting the national security of this country."

"What we're seeing Putin in Russia do is a direct response to the profound weakness of Obama over six and a half years.

Putin views Obama as weak, as ineffective, and frankly, as a laughingstock. And, as a result, he is moving in, he is invading his neighbors, like Ukraine, he's kidnapping Estonians, and he's moving into Syria to gain a stronger foothold in the Middle East."

https://www.tedcruz.org/news/icymi-cruz-we-have-no-business-getting-in-the-middle-of-the-syrian-civil-war-goal-should-be-to-defeat-isis/

**********************************************************

Ted Cruz:
"We need a coherent plan to address both the specific crisis in Syria and the challenge posed more broadly by Putin's resurgent Russia.

The good news is that America still has options, if our leaders can summon the will to exercise them.

For starters, in Syria we can't double down on the failed strategies that have given Putin his opportunity to intervene.

We are now two years out from President Obama's proposed intervention after al-Assad used chemical weapons against his own people. ..."

http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/09/opinions/cruz-syria-putin/index.html

**********************************************************

"According to the Washington Free Beacon, Russia's nuclear arsenal how has over 100 nuclear warheads above the limit set by the treaty.

Since the treaty was launched, Russia has deployed 111 new nuclear warheads, bringing its total number of deployed warheads to 1,648. That treaty limit is 1,550 warheads - a number that must be reached in 2018.

Comparatively, the numbers of U.S. nuclear warheads, missiles and bombers have fallen dramatically and are already below the limits set by the treaty. Additionally, the United States has decreased the number of warheads in its deployed nuclear arsenal by 250.

While the United States intends to eliminate heavy bombers and launchers, Russia has launched a strategic nuclear force expansion.

Russian President Vladimir Putin also recently announced a new doctrine that placed priority on nuclear forces.

If this raises concern for you, you are not alone.

Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., chairman of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Strategic Forces, said Russia "is in the business of violating treaties."

Rogers said Putin has violated several agreements and treaties in the past, and he simply "violates any treaty or agreement that puts limits on capabilities that Mr. Putin and his cronies desire."

"Russia's arguable adherence to the New START Treaty just indicates how bad a deal it is for the United States," he said.

Adm. William Gortney, commander of the U.S. Northern Command, said Wednesday that Russia has read our play book and is "fielding cruise missiles that are very, very accurate, very long range."

Gortney said these missiles have the ability to reach targets in Canada and the United States. He added that Russia has been participating in war game scenarios recently that simulate cruise missile strikes in Alaska.

This news is serious because it appears Russia has no intention of abiding by New START or any other treaty. We should therefore be building up our military and our arsenals instead of depleting them.

source:
http://theminorityreportblog.com/2015/10/11/red-alert-russia-just-did-this-to-its-nuclear-arsenal-and-it-should-put-us-on-high-alert/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

========================================================

From the FreeBeacon:

Russia Adds 111 Warheads Under Arms Treaty
Moscow warheads above New START treaty limit

By: Bill Gertz
October 9, 2015

Russia has now deployed more than 100 nuclear warheads in its strategic arsenal above the limits set by the New START arms treaty limits, two years before it must meet treaty arms reduction goals.

"New START nuclear warhead and delivery system numbers made public Oct. 1 reveal that since the 2010 arms accord went into force, Moscow increased the number of deployed nuclear warheads by a total of 111 weapons for a total of 1,648 deployed warheads. That number is 98 warheads above the treaty limit of 1,550 warheads that must be reached by the 2018 deadline of the treaty.

At the same time, U.S. nuclear warheads, missiles, and bombers have fallen sharply and remain below the required levels under the New START pact.

The United States during the same period of the Russian increases cut its deployed nuclear arsenal by 250 warheads. ..."

(more...)

http://freebeacon.com/national-security/russia-adds-111-warheads-under-arms-treaty/

[ETL]

Donald Trump: 'Putin has eaten Obama's lunch' on Ukraine

Mar 13, 2014
Eun Kyung Kim: TODAY

Donald Trump slammed President Obama Thursday on TODAY for failing to take a stronger line against President Vladimir Putin in dealing with Ukraine, saying he feared Obama would now make up for lost time with imprudent moves to "show his manhood."

The real estate mogul and reality-TV star, who has criticized Putin for sending military troops into Crimea, said Obama must now take fierce steps to prevent the situation from escalating further.

"We should definitely do sanctions and we have to show some strengths. I mean, Putin has eaten Obama's lunch, therefore our lunch, for a long period of time," Trump said. ..."

http://www.today.com/news/donald-trump-putin-has-eaten-obamas-lunch-ukraine-2D79372098
_________________________________________

"I think that I would probably get along with him [Putin] very well."
--Donald Trump, CBS' Face The Nation, Oct 2015

[ETL]

Trump: Iran Deal Requires U.S. Protecting Iran in Event of Israeli Strike

by Jacob Kornbluh
Sept 2, 2015

In a phone interview with CNN Tuesday evening, Trump claimed that there's "something in the Iran deal" that "people don't understand" saying if someone attacks Iran, "we have to come to their defense."

"Does that include Israel?" Trump asked. "And most people say yes, they don't have an exclusion for Israel. So if Israel attacks Iran, according to that deal, I believe, the way it reads, unless they have a codicil or they have something to it, that we have to fight with Iran against Israel." ..."

Trump was most probably referring to language highlighted by the opponents of the deal. On page 142, the deal includes a clause that states, "Co-operation through training and workshops to strengthen Iran's ability to protect against, and respond to nuclear security threats, including sabotage, as well as to enable effective and sustainable nuclear security and physical protection systems."

Washington-based Center for Security Policy asserted that Annex III appears "to commit the United States and other world powers to the defense of Iran's nuclear program."

http://jpupdates.com/2015/09/02/trump-iran-deal-requires-u-s-protecting-iran-in-event-of-israeli-strike/
_________________________________________________

Aug 2015...

[ETL]

Russian build-up in Syria part of secret deal with Iran's Quds Force leader

September 11, 2015
Jennifer Griffin, Lucas Tomlinson
FoxNews.com

As the Pentagon warily eyes a Russian military build-up in Syria, Western intelligence sources tell Fox News that the escalated Russian presence began just days after a secret Moscow meeting in late July between Iran's Quds Force commander - their chief exporter of terror - and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Fox News has learned Quds head Qassem Soleimani and Putin discussed such a joint military plan for Syria at that meeting, an encounter first reported by Fox News in early August. ..."

The Quds Force is the international arm of Iran's Revolutionary Guard, involved in exporting terrorism to Iran's proxies throughout the Middle East including Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Yemen. ..."

Officials who have monitored the build-up say they've seen more than 1,000 Russian combatants - some of them from the same plainclothes Special Forces units who were sent to Crimea and Ukraine. Some of these Russian troops are logistical specialists and needed for security at the expanding Russian bases.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/09/11/russian-build-up-in-syria-part-secret-deal-with-irans-quds-force-leader/
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Pro-Hezbollah Paper: Russia, Iran, Syria, Hezbollah Form Alliance

Sept 23, 2015

A prominent pro-Hezbollah newspaper in Lebanon reported Tuesday that Russia and the terrorist organization have formed an alliance and will fight together in Syria. "The parties to the alliance are the states of Russia, Iran, Syria, and Iraq, with Lebanon's Hezbollah as the fifth party,"

Al-Akhbar Editor in Chief Ibrahim al-Amin wrote. The pact would be called the "4+1 alliance", a pun based on the P5+1 that negotiated the nuclear deal with Iran. Hezbollah is a proxy of Iran based in Lebanon and Moscow has been working with Tehran to save Bashar al-Assad's regime, even sending men and weapons to Syria.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2015/09/22/report-russia-partners-with-hezbollah.html
__________________________________________________________

From Real Clear Politics, Sept 10, 2015...

"In a 2014 New Yorker interview, Obama said his goal was to create a 'new equilibrium' in the Middle East.

In the short run, at least, his signature diplomatic undertaking can be counted on to bring more violence to this volatile region.

The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, as the [Obama-Putin Iran deal] agreement is formally known, provides the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism an infusion of somewhere in the neighborhood of $100 billion of unfrozen assets and a great deal more of continuing revenues as businesses and governments around the world rush to profit from oil-and-gas-rich Iran's reintegration into the world economy.

The agreement relaxes the international isolation of the Islamic Republic and ratifies Tehran's status as a nuclear threshold state. And it relieves restrictions on Iran's acquisition of weapons, including ballistic missiles. ..."

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2015/09/10/iran_deal_throws_sparks_on_mideast_tinderbox_128034.html

[gr8eman]

LOL...keyboard Freudian slip!

[RummyChick]

I can’t rule that out. It’s possible. Right now, I am just grateful he is bombing the hell out of the jihadists.

The next Republican President will have a nightmare on his hands.

[Psalm 144]

The captain has lost his strawberries and is very cross this morning.

[silverleaf]

Assad is going to need a lot of new oil tankers !

[ETL]

I can't rule that out. It's possible. Right now, I am just grateful he is bombing the hell out of the jihadists. The next Republican President will have a nightmare on his hands.

Yes, in the short-term it's great that those barbaric a-holes are taking a beating. The problem is, what happens in the aftermath, in the years ahead. The lowlife FR Putinistas would love to see Russia return to serious superpower status.

[silverleaf]

This
More bonus questions
Was the Turkish ambassador the last person who met with Chris Stevens before the attack?
Was Stevens involved with or opposed to a plan to smuggle chemical weapons from Libya to turkey to be used by FSA “ moderates” to stage a false flag attack on Syrian civilians to be blamed on Assad to draw the West into the Syrian war? What was the role of the Turkish government?
What was the real objective of the Al Qaeda forces involved in th Benghazi attack?
What was the involvement of the muslim brotherhood and Egyptian leader Morsi?

[HoosierWordsmith]

First, Putin not a closet Muslim and in league with ISIS like the Bamster!

Second, Putin is not using the Marquess de Queensbury rules with the Russian military. The Bamster (or more likely ValJar) decides on every US sortie based upon PC criteria (are any women and children within 10 kilometers of the strike?, or will hitting the target cause any environmental damage?, or will any local camels be offended?).

[silverleaf]

I believe Trump and/ or Cruz can reach a state of agreement with Putin on international relations that will considerably ease tensions

I believe Rubio is a squish and Hillary is so old, addled, corrupt and “ compromised” that the Russians and Chinese will pwn them, and run away with the race for world leadership for the next decade or more

[Gritty]

So, what are the Russians bragging about?

We are flying about 5 airstrikes a day in Syria - all of them thoroughly vetted by armies of lawyers. That shows we really really mean it!

[Former Proud Canadian]

What is the difference between ISIS and AQ? Al-nusra? What is a "moderate Islamic radical"? What is difference between an "islamic radical faction" that is real (?) and one that just exists to funnel arms to other "islamic radical factions"?

As for the Russians, they will act in their perceived national interest, unlike the Americans.

You ask, where are the other news services? Protecting Obama and trying to carry Hillary over the finish line.

[Former Proud Canadian]

Was the Turkish ambassador the last person who met with Chris Stevens before the attack?

Perhaps.

Was Stevens involved with or opposed to a plan to smuggle chemical weapons from Libya to turkey to be used by FSA “ moderates” to stage a false flag attack on Syrian civilians to be blamed on Assad to draw the West into the Syrian war?

Stevens seemed like a stand up guy with one foot in the CIA and the other in the State Department. I think he would have been against but perhaps powerless to stop it.

What was the role of the Turkish government?

Good question.

What was the real objective of the Al Qaeda forces involved in th Benghazi attack?

Perhaps to kidnap Stevens as a hostage. Perhaps to kill him. Perhaps to embarrass the CIA. Perhaps as a diversion.

What was the involvement of the muslim brotherhood and Egyptian leader Morsi?

Good question.

[Parley Baer]

This is what a real war on ISIS looks like versus the fake war Obama is conducting.

[Former Proud Canadian]

"What was the involvement of the muslim brotherhood and Egyptian leader Morsi?"

On second thought this was a very, very good question.

Doesn't ValJar have a long and unique relationship to this group? Kind of ties the whole thing together, doesn't it?