Iran has announced that it will build ten (!) new nuclear facilities that will be sited, beginning next March, “inside mountain strongholds.” Iran is “defying international efforts,” and the USA, UK and France have issued vacuous diplomatic condemnations which no one takes seriously. The first link below notes that Iran has already “flouted” a series of UN sanctions so it will pay no attention to any UN or western sanctions in its effort to become a major nuclear power as soon as it can.
I find the timing of this announcement to be of interest. As noted in previous blogs, President Obama responded with incredible weakness to recent provocations and threats from North Korea and China. After Obama consistently showed weakness when he should have demonstrated strength, Russia quickly announced that it will help the Iranians “go nuclear” and Iran has just announced plans for ten new nuclear facilities. I think both Russia and Iran see Obama as the weakest American president since Jimmy Carter (and perhaps in all of US history). None of the nations in the Gog-Magog alliance identified in Ezekiel 38:2-6 so far have any reason to fear the USA as long as Obama is president. The danger, of course, is that Obama will finally realize how weak he is perceived by the world and that he will feel the need to “do something” to demonstrate some backbone and leadership. In past blogs I have opined that Russia and China (Iran’s backers) actually want the USA and Israel to attack Iran so they can “field-test” the latest Russian and Chinese weaponry against attacking US and Israeli warplanes and missiles. By defying the USA, the UN and Obama, Russia and Iran have all but said to the West: “we dare you” to attack us. It is possible that Obama, in deep political trouble with the US voters, may finally launch an “October surprise” attack vs. Iran to try and demonstrate his “leadership” to the voters just before the US elections in November. Time will tell.
Now back to Iran’s announcement. The link below reminds us that Iran has already built a nuclear enrichment plant at Qom deep inside a “secret mountain base” which is suitable only for making nuclear weapons. Previous reports indicate that the Qom base was operational before western intelligence agencies even knew about it. Given that fact, I have a sneaking suspicion that Iran’s ten new nuclear facilities may already exist—buried deep inside mountain ranges within Iran. In making this announcement, Iran may simply be preparing the world for what will be unveiled in the future as a far more massive nuclear program than anyone previously realized. The second link cites an Iranian official as saying that the site selection for its ten new nuclear facilities is already “in its final stages.” This could infer that work at these ten facilities is already actually occurring. In an excellent example of the profound denial that exists within the western world about Iran’s bellicose intentions, a French diplomatic statement made the gullible statement that “We expect Iran to comply with its international obligations.” How can diplomats be so disconnected from reality? Iran has made it very clear it doesn’t care a whit about any “UN sanctions” or “international obligations.”
The USA and Israel have long dithered about attacking Iran and they are rapidly running out of time to act, as Russia’s announced support to help Iran go operational at the above-ground Bushehr nuclear plant (see my August 14 blog). The final link below cites the former US Ambassador to the UN, John Bolton, as saying that the world has only until August 21 to attack the Bushehr reactor before it goes active. That is only a few days from now. We will soon know if such an attack is carried out. Personally, I do not know what will occur, but if I had to bet one way or the other, I’d bet no such attack will occur by August 21st. I suspect that the above-ground Bushehr nuclear reactor is (and has been from the beginning) a decoy nuclear facility that would draw all the attention of world’s intelligence community. It is possible that the Bushehr plant really is a civilian energy-production nuclear facility and no more. If it is and it is attacked, Iran can play the victim when it is attacked.
The real extent of Iran’s nuclear weapons program is being determined by what is going on at the Qom nuclear weapons plant and whatever other “secret” nuclear plants are already in operation in Iran in deeply-buried sites within mountain ranges. The siting of one of its “real” nuclear weapons plants at the Iranian city of Qom is a very clever choice by the Iranians. Qom is a “holy” city in the Shiite religion so if bombs fall on Qom, it could both ignite a wave of Shiite rage against the West as well as cause Shiite Iranians to rally around the radical leadership of Iran.
The West faces hard choices. I’d feel more secure if the Western world were led by someone other than a “community organizer” from Chicago. I think much of the western world feels the same way.
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20100817/irannukes17_st.art.htm
http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/WTARC/2010/me_iran0785_08_16.asp
