Free Republic

This episode spotlights glaring contradictions between Iran’s words and actions that completely unravel the “not a threat” narrative pushed in Western discourse. By walking through real evidence, official statements and strategic patterns, this breakdown teaches you how to spot propaganda, understand what a “threshold nuclear state” really means and why energy politics and misinformation campaigns are just as critical to the story as missiles and warheads...leaving you questioning not just Iran’s intentions, but who benefits from downplaying them.

A meeting of senior Iranian officials that was hit by an Israeli airstrike on February 28 may have been linked to the Islamic Republic’s final deliberations over building a nuclear weapon. On the last day of February, as reports emerged that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei had been killed in an Israeli bombardment, it was also announced that a meeting of the Defense Council had been struck. Several senior figures were killed in the strike, the Israeli military confirmed on March 16. Among those killed were Ali Shamkhani, a senior adviser to Khamenei and secretary of the Defense Council; Abdolrahim...

The campaign in Iran is necessary for a variety of reasons. It is also justifiable under fair Just War evaluations. There are critical objectives that must be met: 1. Totally destroy Iran's nuclear capacity. I extend that to any so-called peaceful nuclear energy use. Iran is not trustworthy with any nuclear capacity whatsoever. 2. Totally access in and around the Strait of Hormuz. Whether this takes the form of escort of ships and annihilation of any opposition any time it appears, or whether it requires actual control of the Iranian side of the land mass, it is a necessary objective....

'Up to 60 percent of enriched uranium is still stored in tunnels in Isfahan, allowing Iran to produce a nuclear bomb in a short period of time,' says Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Britain's aircraft carrier could require a French escort to the Middle East as there are not enough Royal Navy ships to do the job. HMS Prince of Wales has been upgraded to advanced readiness, as criticism mounts over Britain's military response to the conflict with Iran. This means that the crew of the £3billion ship, currently undergoing repairs in Portsmouth, must be ready to sail with five days' notice.

IDF Chief Spokesman Brig, Gen. Effie Deffrin revealed the strike in a March 3 press conference, though doubts had persisted about how critical the site was for Iran's nuclear program.

Senior officials from United States and Israel have recently discussed an unprecedented scenario: deploying special forces on Iranian soil to physically secure the stockpile of enriched uranium accumulated by Iran. This was reported Sunday morning by Axios, citing two U.S. administration officials and sources familiar with the details of the plan. At the center of the proposed complex operation are about 450 kilograms of uranium enriched to a level of 60 percent. According to intelligence assessments, this is a critical quantity that could be rapidly enriched to the military-grade level of 90 percent-enough to produce no fewer than 11 nuclear...

Oman's foreign minister said US-Iran nuclear talks have made major progress, including agreement on zero stockpiling of enriched uranium and full IAEA verification, urging more time to finalize the deal.Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi said Iran has agreed it would “never, ever” possess nuclear material capable of producing a bomb, calling it a breakthrough that puts a peace deal with the United States “within our reach.” Speaking to CBS News after meeting Vice President JD Vance in Washington, Albusaidi described the development as unprecedented. “The single most important achievement, I believe, is the agreement that Iran will never, ever have...

Moscow will observe the limits of the last nuclear arms pact with the United States that expired last week as long as it sees that Washington is doing the same, Russia’s top diplomat said Wednesday. The New START treaty expired Feb. 5, leaving no restrictions on the two largest atomic arsenals for the first time in more than half a century and fueling fears of an unconstrained nuclear arms race. Russian President Vladimir Putin last year declared his readiness to stick to the treaty’s limits for another year if Washington followed suit, but U.S. President Trump has argued he wants...

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday ruled out Tehran ever giving up uranium enrichment in its negotiations with Washington, insisting it will not be intimidated by the threat of war with the United States. Araghchi told a forum in Tehran that Tehran had little trust in Washington, and even doubted that the US side was taking renewed negotiations seriously. “Why do we insist so much on enrichment and refuse to give it up, even if a war is imposed on us? Because no one has the right to dictate our behavior,” Araghchi declared.

The Kremlin said Thursday it regretted the expiration of the last remaining nuclear arms pact between Russia and the United States, while President Trump declared he was against keeping its limits and wants a better deal. The New START treaty’s termination left no caps on the two largest atomic arsenals for the first time in more than a half-century, fueling fears of an unconstrained nuclear arms race. Russian President Vladimir Putin last year declared his readiness to stick to the treaty’s limits for another year if Washington followed suit, but Mr. Trump has ignored the offer and argued that he...

With the US relationship with Europe increasingly frayed, and a major nuclear arms treaty set to expire this week, longtime pacifist Germany is starting to think differently about its nuclear posture. German Chancellor Frederich Merz recently revealed that Germany is in discussions with other European powers about establishing Europe-wide nuclear deterrence. And while it’s highly unlikely that Berlin would acquire its own nuclear weapons, European countries such as Germany are beginning to look beyond the US for protection. Germany hopes that the French will allow discussions about their nuclear strategy on a European level, Emil Archambault, a defense expert at...

Yesterday, we were all sort of stunned to find that Chinese dictator Xi Jinping had summarily dismissed and had placed under investigation General Zhang Youxia, the now-former vice chairman of China's Central Military Commission; see New Round of Purges Wrack the Chinese People's Liberation Army and Defense Establishment – RedState. The removal of Zhang meant 37 of the 81 generals appointed since October 2022 were either under arrest or had simply disappeared. The initial reports said Zhang was removed because he “undermined Xi’s authority, abetted political and corruption problems that impaired the party’s leadership over the armed forces, and damaged...

There continues to be a debate among global geopolitical analysts regarding whether the United States and China are engaged in a Cold War or a competition for global dominance.The answer is irrelevant.By anyone's observation, China seeks to dominate the 21st century, and they will do so by "any means necessary." In the process, they will use their military might to create a sphere of influence that is designed to cow nations that range from Japan to Australia to India.Their invasion of Taiwan is almost a foregone conclusion among many military observers, who believe it is not a question of if...

In this fraught international context, Trump is acting totally saneDonald Trump has exercised the nuclear option, sort of. Sitting somewhere in South Korea, the President launched a Truth Social post on the topic of nukes: “Because of other countries testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis. That process will begin immediately.” Then he thanked the world for its attention and sallied into a meeting with China’s President Xi Jinping.That timing isn’t coincidental. The Red Dragon has spent the last decade hoarding nuclear warheads – almost as if there...

SummaryRussia uses 9M729 missile in Ukraine, Kyiv saysThe 9M729 was at heart of arms control dispute in 2019The missile can carry a conventional or nuclear warheadLONDON, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Russia has in recent months attacked Ukraine with a cruise missile whose secret development prompted Donald Trump to abandon a nuclear arms control pact with Moscow in his first term as U.S. president, Ukraine's foreign minister said.Andrii Sybiha's comments are the first confirmation that Russia has used the ground-launched 9M729 missile in combat - in Ukraine or elsewhere.Russia has fired the missile at Ukraine 23 times since August, a second...

President Donald Trump announced that he has ordered the United States to resume nuclear weapons testing "immediately," saying he directed the Department of War to match other nations’ programs. He called the move a necessary step to maintain global parity. Trump wrote in a Truth Social post Wednesday night: "The United States has more Nuclear Weapons than any other country. This was accomplished, including a complete update and renovation of existing weapons, during my First Term in office." "Because of the tremendous destructive power, I HATED to do it, but had no choice! Russia is second, and China is a...

First Strike - Overview of 1980s Nuclear Retaliatory Response Scenario (Full Version) . Association of Air Force Missileers (AAFM. 1,132 Comments. 327,371 views Jan 5, 2022 Show less Video includes Minuteman ICBM operations, Airborne Launch Control System (Looking Glass) and other Strategic Air Command and U.S. Navy resources that would have been brought to the fight if America was attacked. This is the full version of the video .. Presented from the archives of the Association of Air Force Missileers (AAFM) www.afmissileers.org tonight you will be the victim of a nuclear attack by the russians. we might pay particular notes...

Those of us who came of age during the Cold War remember such movies as 'Testament' and 'On The Beach', which depicted the aftermath of a full-scale nuclear exchange between the US and USSR. We also remember real-world events such as the Cuban Missile Crisis and the downing of Flight 007 over Korea in 1983.Are we naive enough to believe that just because the USSR no longer exists, today's Russia no longer possesses a stockpile of 6500+ nuclear warheads and the means to deliver them anywhere on the planet?

Putin is amassing nuclear weapons and attack submarines in the Arctic Circle as his country prepares for war with NATO, Norway has said. Norway's Defence Minister Tore Sandvik claimed his country had found Russia had been increasing its military presence in the Arctic, particularly in the Kola peninsula. The politician also said Vladimir Putin had been attempting to take over the Arctic region where its fleet is based to block shipping routes to Nato allies if war broke out. 'Russia is building up on the Kola peninsula... where one of the largest arsenals of nuclear warheads in the world is...