Ali
02-21-2007, 11:50 AM
2002 (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/2205245.stm)
US 'prepares' for possible Iraq attack.
There are growing signs that the United States is putting into place the necessary equipment for an eventual attack upon Iraq.
At least two large cargo ships have been hired to carry military supplies to the region, according to Pentagon reports, and the US Air Force is also stockpiling munitions and equipment at its key bases in the Gulf.
But even as the preparations continue, so too does the debate on the wisdom of any attack.
The Bush administration may be just beginning to realise the extent of the opposition to its plans to remove the Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein from power.
Preparations
Pentagon sources indicate that logistical preparations are underway.
The Pentagon has hired one large transport ship to move additional armoured vehicles to the Gulf region, and another will be heading that way for a pre-planned military exercise later this year.
Additional pre-positioned equipment may also be moved to the Indian Ocean - a relatively short steaming distance from the Gulf.
At the moment this is all being presented as prudent planning and housekeeping. Certainly, no green light has been given for any attack plan.
But it is also part of an elaborate psychological campaign, both to prepare the US and its allies for a possible war and to put additional pressure on the Iraqi regime itself.
Domestic dissent
But there are also contrary signs suggesting the Bush administration may be slowly backing away from a full-scale conflict with Iraq.
The level of opposition from America's friends and allies in Europe and the Gulf is one factor.
More important is the lack of consensus in Washington itself, especially on Capitol Hill.
Some powerful voices - including veteran foreign policy experts on the Republican side of the political spectrum - have urged caution. The administration has been slow to set out its policy for Iraq after Saddam is removed, and some critics say this is because no such plan exists.
In the absence of any convincing scenario for a post-war Iraq, a military campaign to oust Saddam Hussein may become politically impossible to carry out.
But that of course is not the message that the Bush administration wants the world to hear.
2007 (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/6376639.stm)
US 'Iran attack plans' revealed
US contingency plans for air strikes on Iran extend beyond nuclear sites and include most of the country's military infrastructure, the BBC has learned.
It is understood that any such attack - if ordered - would target Iranian air bases, naval bases, missile facilities and command-and-control centres.
The US insists it is not planning to attack, and is trying to persuade Tehran to stop uranium enrichment.
The UN has urged Iran to stop the programme or face economic sanctions.
But diplomatic sources have told the BBC that as a fallback plan, senior officials at Central Command in Florida have already selected their target sets inside Iran.
That list includes Iran's uranium enrichment plant at Natanz. Facilities at Isfahan, Arak and Bushehr are also on the target list, the sources say.
Two triggers
BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner says the trigger for such an attack reportedly includes any confirmation that Iran was developing a nuclear weapon - which it denies.
Alternatively, our correspondent adds, a high-casualty attack on US forces in neighbouring Iraq could also trigger a bombing campaign if it were traced directly back to Tehran.
Long range B2 stealth bombers would drop so-called "bunker-busting" bombs in an effort to penetrate the Natanz site, which is buried some 25m (27 yards) underground.
The BBC's Tehran correspondent Frances Harrison says the news that there are now two possible triggers for an attack is a concern to Iranians.
Authorities insist there is no cause for alarm but ordinary people are now becoming a little worried, she says.
Deadline
Earlier this month US officers in Iraq said they had evidence Iran was providing weapons to Iraqi Shia militias. However the most senior US military officer later cast doubt on this, saying that they only had proof that weapons "made in Iran" were being used in Iraq.
Gen Peter Pace, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, said he did not know that the Iranian government "clearly knows or is complicit" in this.
At the time, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said the accusations were "excuses to prolong the stay" of US forces in Iraq.
Middle East analysts have recently voiced their fears of catastrophic consequences for any such US attack on Iran.
Britain's previous ambassador to Tehran, Sir Richard Dalton, told the BBC it would backfire badly by probably encouraging the Iranian government to develop a nuclear weapon in the long term.
Last year Iran resumed uranium enrichment - a process that can make fuel for power stations or, if greatly enriched, material for a nuclear bomb.
Tehran insists its programme is for civil use only, but Western countries suspect Iran is trying to build nuclear weapons.
The UN Security Council has called on Iran to suspend its enrichment of uranium by 21 February.
If it does not, and if the International Atomic Energy Agency confirms this, the resolution says that further economic sanctions will be considered.
Fool me once... (http://z.about.com/d/politicalhumor/1/0/R/R/bush_foolme.gif)
US 'prepares' for possible Iraq attack.
There are growing signs that the United States is putting into place the necessary equipment for an eventual attack upon Iraq.
At least two large cargo ships have been hired to carry military supplies to the region, according to Pentagon reports, and the US Air Force is also stockpiling munitions and equipment at its key bases in the Gulf.
But even as the preparations continue, so too does the debate on the wisdom of any attack.
The Bush administration may be just beginning to realise the extent of the opposition to its plans to remove the Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein from power.
Preparations
Pentagon sources indicate that logistical preparations are underway.
The Pentagon has hired one large transport ship to move additional armoured vehicles to the Gulf region, and another will be heading that way for a pre-planned military exercise later this year.
Additional pre-positioned equipment may also be moved to the Indian Ocean - a relatively short steaming distance from the Gulf.
At the moment this is all being presented as prudent planning and housekeeping. Certainly, no green light has been given for any attack plan.
But it is also part of an elaborate psychological campaign, both to prepare the US and its allies for a possible war and to put additional pressure on the Iraqi regime itself.
Domestic dissent
But there are also contrary signs suggesting the Bush administration may be slowly backing away from a full-scale conflict with Iraq.
The level of opposition from America's friends and allies in Europe and the Gulf is one factor.
More important is the lack of consensus in Washington itself, especially on Capitol Hill.
Some powerful voices - including veteran foreign policy experts on the Republican side of the political spectrum - have urged caution. The administration has been slow to set out its policy for Iraq after Saddam is removed, and some critics say this is because no such plan exists.
In the absence of any convincing scenario for a post-war Iraq, a military campaign to oust Saddam Hussein may become politically impossible to carry out.
But that of course is not the message that the Bush administration wants the world to hear.
2007 (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/6376639.stm)
US 'Iran attack plans' revealed
US contingency plans for air strikes on Iran extend beyond nuclear sites and include most of the country's military infrastructure, the BBC has learned.
It is understood that any such attack - if ordered - would target Iranian air bases, naval bases, missile facilities and command-and-control centres.
The US insists it is not planning to attack, and is trying to persuade Tehran to stop uranium enrichment.
The UN has urged Iran to stop the programme or face economic sanctions.
But diplomatic sources have told the BBC that as a fallback plan, senior officials at Central Command in Florida have already selected their target sets inside Iran.
That list includes Iran's uranium enrichment plant at Natanz. Facilities at Isfahan, Arak and Bushehr are also on the target list, the sources say.
Two triggers
BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner says the trigger for such an attack reportedly includes any confirmation that Iran was developing a nuclear weapon - which it denies.
Alternatively, our correspondent adds, a high-casualty attack on US forces in neighbouring Iraq could also trigger a bombing campaign if it were traced directly back to Tehran.
Long range B2 stealth bombers would drop so-called "bunker-busting" bombs in an effort to penetrate the Natanz site, which is buried some 25m (27 yards) underground.
The BBC's Tehran correspondent Frances Harrison says the news that there are now two possible triggers for an attack is a concern to Iranians.
Authorities insist there is no cause for alarm but ordinary people are now becoming a little worried, she says.
Deadline
Earlier this month US officers in Iraq said they had evidence Iran was providing weapons to Iraqi Shia militias. However the most senior US military officer later cast doubt on this, saying that they only had proof that weapons "made in Iran" were being used in Iraq.
Gen Peter Pace, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, said he did not know that the Iranian government "clearly knows or is complicit" in this.
At the time, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said the accusations were "excuses to prolong the stay" of US forces in Iraq.
Middle East analysts have recently voiced their fears of catastrophic consequences for any such US attack on Iran.
Britain's previous ambassador to Tehran, Sir Richard Dalton, told the BBC it would backfire badly by probably encouraging the Iranian government to develop a nuclear weapon in the long term.
Last year Iran resumed uranium enrichment - a process that can make fuel for power stations or, if greatly enriched, material for a nuclear bomb.
Tehran insists its programme is for civil use only, but Western countries suspect Iran is trying to build nuclear weapons.
The UN Security Council has called on Iran to suspend its enrichment of uranium by 21 February.
If it does not, and if the International Atomic Energy Agency confirms this, the resolution says that further economic sanctions will be considered.
Fool me once... (http://z.about.com/d/politicalhumor/1/0/R/R/bush_foolme.gif)