The Unravelling Of The Doctrine Of MAD In 2006At least three unofficial Iranian emissaries have been in Washington this spring with the same recommendation: Send a high-ranking current or former U.S. official to Qom for secret talks with Ayatollah Ali Khameini to explore the possibility of a geopolitical deal before Iran passes yet another nuclear milestone -- e.g., a non-aggression treaty in return for taking Iran's gauntleted hand off the nuclear sword and resheathing it in an IAEA scabbard.
An American exit from Iraq would... (more)
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Queen to reign 'until day she dies'Key quote "I'm perfectly certain she will never retire as such. Because it's not like a normal job and to the Queen the vows that she made on Coronation Day are something so deep and so special that she wouldn't consider not continuing to fulfil those vows until she dies." - Margaret Rhodes
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THE Queen will abide by the vow that she made at her coronation and remain as monarch for the rest of her life, her cousin revealed yesterday.
Margaret Rhode... (more)
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Negroponte: Iran Nuclear Claims ExaggeratedWASHINGTON -- Despite the wild and threatening claims of its hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran may not be as close to building nuclear weapons as the world may think.
So says John Negroponte, U.S. National Intelligence Director, who thinks Iran would likely obtain nuclear weapons long before they had the ability to create their own.
Negroponte, in an interview with NBC News, shared his opinion of Iran's nuclear threat and an assessment of what it would t... (more)
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America meets the new superpowerWhen President Hu Jintao of China shakes hands with President George Bush in Washington tomorrow and gives one of his fixed grins for photographers, it will not be just another meeting between the leader of a large developing country and the chief executive of the richest nation on earth.
China is rising fast and is expected to eclipse the United States economically in the future - its gross domestic product is tipped to overtake that of America by 2045.
While Mr Bu... (more)
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US to call for freeze on Iran assets and visa curbsMOSCOW: The US is pressing other world powers to consider what it called targeted sanctions against Iran as an April 30 United Nations deadline looms for Tehran over its nuclear program.
World crude oil prices topped $US70 ($95.50) a barrel on Monday, the highest level for nearly eight months, as Iran's pursuit of its nuclear program heightened market fears that Washington might take military action against the oil-producing Islamic republic.
But American talk of la... (more)
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Death squad allegations threaten to derail Bush's last Latin allyAlvaro Uribe's procession to a second term as Colombia's President hit a stumbling block yesterday as he responded wildly to allegations that his government colluded with paramilitaries to kill civilians.
Mr Uribe, the last man standing among Washington's right-wing allies in South America, is riding high in the polls ahead of the presidential election on 28 May. His success is crucial to the White House, which has seen a succession of sympathetic governments defeated in the so-ca... (more)
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Blair refuses to back Iran strikeTONY Blair has told George Bush that Britain cannot offer military support to any strike on Iran, regardless of whether the move wins the backing of the international community, government sources claimed yesterday.
Amid increasing tension over Tehran's attempts to develop a military nuclear capacity, the Prime Minister has laid bare the limits of his support for President Bush, who is believed to be considering an assault on Iran, Foreign Office sources revealed.
U... (more)
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US colonel offers Iraq an apology of sorts for devastation of BabylonIn an act of at least partial contrition, an officer in charge of the US military occupation of Babylon in 2003 and 2004 has offered to make a formal apology for the destruction his troops wrought on the ancient site.
Colonel John Coleman, former chief of staff for the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force in Iraq, said yesterday that if the head of the Iraqi antiquities board wanted an apology, "if it makes him feel good, we can certainly give him one".
For more than a mi... (more)
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US plots ‘new liberation of Baghdad’THE American military is planning a “second liberation of Baghdad” to be carried out with the Iraqi army when a new government is installed.
Pacifying the lawless capital is regarded as essential to establishing the authority of the incoming government and preparing for a significant withdrawal of American troops.
Strategic and tactical plans are being laid by US commanders in Iraq and at the US army base in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, under Lieutenant- Ge... (more)
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Iran suicide bombers ‘ready to hit Britain’IRAN has formed battalions of suicide bombers to strike at British and American targets if the nation’s nuclear sites are attacked. According to Iranian officials, 40,000 trained suicide bombers are ready for action.
The main force, named the Special Unit of Martyr Seekers in the Revolutionary Guards, was first seen last month when members marched in a military parade, dressed in olive-green uniforms with explosive packs around their waists and detonators held high.
<... (more)
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Retired colonel claims U.S. military operations are already 'underway' in IranDuring an interview on CNN Friday night, retired U.S. Air Force Colonel Sam Gardiner claimed that U.S. military operations are already 'underway' inside Iran, RAW STORY has found.
"I would say -- and this may shock some -- I think the decision has been made and military operations are under way," Col. Gardiner told CNN International anchor Jim Clancy (as noted by Digby at the blog Hullabaloo).
(Crooks and Liars has a video clip of the interview)
G... (more)
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U.S. strike on Iran could make Iraq look like a warm-up boutWASHINGTON—On the ground, more terror.
Poison-laced missiles raining down on U.S. troops in Iraq or Afghanistan, the downing of a U.S. passenger airliner, suicide bombers in major cities, perhaps unleashing their deadly payload in a shopping mall food court. It could be 9/11 all over again. Or worse.
On the political front, more anti-Americanism.
Renewed venom aimed at Washington from European capitals, greater distrust from China and Russia, ou... (more)
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New Russian Missiles to Be Unrivalled for Next 15-20 Years — ExpertNew Russian missiles will easily be able to penetrate any prospective missile shield and will remain unrivalled for the next 15-20 years, the head of Russia’s top missile design institute has said.
Yuri Solomonov, the head of the Heat Technology Institute, the top Russian missile-design center, quoted by AP, said the Topol-M and Bulava ballistic missiles would form the core of the nation’s nuclear forces until 2040 and allow Russia to maintain nuclear parity with the U... (more)
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Pope condemns geneticists 'who play at being God'THE Pope will deliver a blistering attack on the “satanic” mores of modern society today, warning against an “inane apologia of evil” that is in danger of destroying humanity.
In a series of Good Friday meditations that he will lead in Rome, the Pope will say that society is in the grip of a kind of “anti-Genesis” described as “a diabolical pride aimed at eliminating the family”. He will pray for society to be cleansed of the “... (more)
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Iran Could Produce Nuclear Bomb in 16 Days, U.S. SaysFlashback: Iran Is Judged 10 Years From Nuclear Bomb
Iran, which is defying United Nations Security Council demands to cease its nuclear program, may be capable of making a nuclear bomb within 16 days if it goes ahead with plans to install thousands of centrifuges at its Natanz plant, a U.S. State Department official said.
``Natanz was constructed to house 50,000 centr... (more)
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New Italian PM to Pull Iraq TroopsRome, Apr 12 (Prensa Latina) Romano Prodi, the leader of the Union coalition, which won the latest elections in Italy, said on Wednesday that he will withdraw the Italian troops from Iraq when he takes office, claiming there was no justification for the US-led invasion of the Arab country.
In an interview with the French Le Monde daily, the Italian Prime Minister Elect said that he will fulfill his election promise of withdrawing his country´s troops from Iraq.
... (more)
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IRAQ: Doctors, NGOs warn of high infant mortality in BasraBASRA, 11 April (IRIN) - As a result of water-borne diseases and a lack of medical supplies, infants born in the southern city of Basra are subject to abnormally high mortality rates, say officials of an international NGO devoted to child health issues.
"For weeks, there were no I.V. fluids available in the hospitals of Basra," said Marie Fernandez, spokeswoman for European aid agency Saving Children from War. "As a consequence, many children, mainly under five-years old, died aft... (more)
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Council on Foreign Relations told of U.S. plans for Iran strikeLONDON — Western defense sources and analysts told a meeting of the Council on Foreign Relations that Britain and the United States are preparing for the prospect of air strikes against Iran's nuclear facilities in late 2006 if diplomatic efforts at the United Nations Security Council are not succesful.
"In just the past few weeks I've been convinced that at least some in the administration have already made up their minds that they would like to launch a military strike aga... (more)
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Iran Rejects Russia’s Call to Stop Uranium Enrichment WorkIran has rejected Russia’s call to end its uranium enrichment work. A senior Iranian official said the country’s nuclear program could not be stopped.
“Iran’s nuclear activities are like a waterfall which has begun to flow. It cannot be stopped,” the official was quoted by Reuters on condition of anonymity.
Iran said on Tuesday it had produced low-grade enriched uranium suitable for use in nuclear power stations, setting itself on a col... (more)
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Iraqi politician warns of 'river of blood'Baghdad - The chairman of a Sunni Iraqi party warned on Tuesday that Iraq faced massive bloodshed if the country's rowing political factions failed soon to form a government as a meeting of Shiite politicians ended without a solution to the impasse.
Saleh al-Mutlaq, of the non-sectarian Iraqi Front for National Dialogue, said that 'an Iraqi government should be formed in the next few days, otherwise Iraq will drown in a river of blood.'
Al-Mutlaq was also quoted in ... (more)
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Iran declares key nuclear advanceIran's president says his nation has successfully produced the enriched uranium needed to make nuclear fuel.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Iran had joined the nations with "nuclear technology" but again insisted it did not want nuclear weapons.
Tehran resumed enrichment research in February. Last month the UN gave Iran 30 days to halt work or face action.
The US responded to the latest news by saying that Iran was "moving in the wrong direction".
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