Patriot missiles being removed from Turkey were hacked, given ‘unexplained orders’

(Image via Sigmalive.com)

There are several weird elements in the missile defense drama suddenly being played out in Turkey.  Alert readers won’t be surprised that two of those weird elements are Russia and Iran.

Seemingly out of the blue, Germany announced this past weekend that the German contingent of two Patriot missile batteries, deployed to Turkey as a defensive measure in January 2013 – against the threat of Syrian Scuds – would be withdrawn ahead of schedule.

Within hours, the U.S. had made the same announcement about the American Patriot missiles that were deployed to Turkey at the same time.  The German and American contingents represent four of the five NATO Patriot batteries now in Turkey (the fifth is from Spain).  The four units will be gone by the end of 2015.

Complete unraveling: Top 5 reasons why the non-deal agreement with Iran is bad

These are the top five other than the fact that it’s not a deal; it’s a surrender.  The West has agreed to lift the sanctions on Iran.  Iran has not agreed to give up anything she needs to acquire a bomb, or cease any of her aggressive behavior (e.g., arming and training Hezbollah and Hamas, fighting wars in Syria, Iraq, and Yemen).  Not one of these things – not one – is a measure of performance Iran will actually have to demonstrate to get the sanctions lifted.

1. The agreement paves Iran’s path to the bomb. The only question about Iran and the bomb now is when Iran will get it. If Iran adheres to the terms of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) agreement (link to full text here), she will retain the means, and improve the expertise, to build nuclear weapons throughout the next 10 years.  She would wait for that 10 years to pass, however, before enriching enough uranium to test a warhead and stockpile weapons.

Catastrophe: U.S. fails to intercept Bear H bombers flying in Alaska ADIZ

Tu-95MS Bear H intercepted in April 2014 by an RAF Typhoon. (Image via The Aviationist)

This is extraordinarily disturbing.  There is no possible justification for it.  Emphasis added:

Two Russian nuclear-capable bombers intruded into the U.S. air defense [identification] zone [ADIZ]* near Alaska last week in the latest saber rattling by Moscow, defense officials said.

The Tu-95 Bear H bombers flew into the Alaska zone on April 22. But unlike most earlier incursions, no U.S. interceptor jets were dispatched to shadow them, said defense officials familiar with the latest U.S.-Russian aerial encounter.

Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a spokesman for the U.S. Northern Command and North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), declined to confirm the incursion. But he said no jets were dispatched last week to intercept intruding aircraft.

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Bad, or worse? Depends on what the meaning of ‘S-300’ is

S-300PMU-2 strikes a professional pose. (Image: TV Zvezda via YouTube)

New post up at Liberty Unyielding.  Enjoy!

Peace in our time: Russia, NATO approach Black Sea flashpoint without CFE

Russian military convoy near Ukrainian border, late 2014. (Image: CNN)

New post up at Liberty Unyielding.  Enjoy!