Bill Koenig's Commentary: Balkan-Iraq Crisis



I have included a report from Intelligence International LTD, the well regarded British intelligence service (via Newsmax.com). They said Saddam is warning of an imminent showdown with the United States.

This report, along with the one I e-mailed to you Friday regarding North Korean troop movement, are examples of Senator Inhofe's (R-Oklahoma) concerns over the possibility of simultaneous war in the Middle East and Southeast Asia, while involved in the Balkan's. (Not to mention what Russia and China might do in response.)

He said with so much equipment and personnel in the Balkans and with the depletion of weapons, the U.S. and allies (South Korea, Taiwan, Japan and Israel) are extremely vulnerable if war broke out in Southeast Asia and /or in the Middle East.

Below are some additional repercussions I have seen for the United States that have come from 53 days of U.S. and NATO bombings.

* U.S. relationships with Russia have been severely harmed. (Russia still has 6660 nuclear missiles (according to AP) in place. They also have a large biological weapons inventory. They are also blaming the west for the rubble devaluation and the economic harm that it produced.)
* Russian people are seeing on TV "night after night" the bombings of Yugoslavia by NATO and U.S. forces; there is no mention of the refugees.
* In a recent poll, two thirds of the Russian people fear attack by NATO and the U.S.
* More than 600,000 refugees have fled their homes. The cities have been bombed, bridges have been knocked out, and infrastructure destroyed.
* Billions of dollars have been spent so far on the war, with much more projected.
* Billions of dollars will be spent rebuilding the country; with most of the money coming from the surplus intended for Social Security.
* Many people are not buying the ethnic cleansing reasons as the sole purpose for intervention. Some people are pointing to the vast mineral resources of the Balkans and even Russia.
* Many Muslim groups are furious over the impact the "air only" war has had on the refugee situation.
* The Chinese people are very angry over the bombing of their embassy in Belgrade.
* Chinese TV and newspapers have shown pictures of the dead Chinese, their funerals, the continuous bombings and the protests around China.
* Human rights discussions with China have been negatively impacted.
* The Chinese are using the bombings to divert attention from the espionage findings.
* The Chinese are calling the espionage reports propaganda; an attempt by the U.S. to get people's attention off of the barbarism in the Balkans.
* The White House has been directing the war not the Pentagon. This has further lowered the military's moral, with many officers counting their days to retirement.
* General Colin Powell stated today on NBC's Meet the Press, "The greatest error in the Kosovo strategy has been allowing Milosevic to determine what happens next. There is no well defined plan in place or specific goals."
* The U.S. cruise missile supply is dangerously low. It will take two to three years to replenish the inventory.
* Equipment and personnel that might be needed quickly in other parts of the world are in the Balkans.
* The Wall Street Journal has called for the resignation of the top national security people for a botched effort in the Balkans.

It is incredible how a skirmish with a small nation has led into such an extremely dangerous situation world wide.

As I had mentioned before, the previous World Wars began in this area too; the "principalities of darkness" continue to loom over this area and impact the world.

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Saddam Issues Threat
http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover.shtml
Saturday May 15, 12:37 PM

Earlier this week, Intelligence International LTD, the well regarded Britain-based intelligence advisory, sent an urgent "Private Alert" to its world wide subscribers.

Inside Cover has received a copy.

"Saddam Warns of Imminent Showdown with the U.S.," headlines the action gram.

Intelligence International reports that Iraqi diplomatic sources in Amman, Jordan, have claimed that Hussein recently sent a memorandum to "senior staff in the party, state, and the army."

The memo from Hussein asserts that "the showdown with the United States is not far away."

Hussein is said to be promising a "crucial confrontation that will end in Iraq's favour."

The memo continues, implying Hussein may use weapons of mass destruction, "Iraq will confront-with determination, vigour, and a devastating response that will be remembered throughout history-the latest U.S. attempt to inflict harm on it."

Intelligence International notes that Hussein has made vain threats before. This time, however, the intelligence advisory suggests Hussein should be taken seriously because President Clinton has entangled America's military in Kosovo. Such an entanglement may have provided Iraq with an "unmissable opportunity," the advisory concludes.

Already NewsMax.com and other sources have reported a massive shift of American naval and air power from the Gulf-leaving the region vulnerable to Saddam.

Top military commanders like General Jack Singlaub(ret.) and Admiral Thomas Moorer(ret.) stated at NewsMax.com's "America at Risk" Los Angeles Conference that American naval and air power has also been significantly drawn down in the Pacific.

They both stated that South Korea is extremely vulnerable to a North Korean attack in the near future.

Affirming those sentiments this week, General Hugh Shelton, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, told Congress that North Korea has engaged in a forward deployment suggesting a possible attack on the South. He said American troops have been on a heightened state of alert.

Several defense think tanks, including the Center for Security Policy headed by Frank Gaffney, have warned that America may be faced with several, simultaneous crises, including ones with Iraq and North Korea.

Clinton's defense policies have effectively "hollowed out" the American military. Experts say that the American military would be unable to deal with one crisis, let alone several.


Koenig's International News - Bill Koenig - http://watch.org Post Office Box 671164, Dallas, TX 75367