British FM: Israel and Iran Both Potential Threats

[bemildred]

England's Foreign Minister Jack Straw says that the world should worry about disabling Israel's nuclear capabilities as much as it is concerned with preventing Iran from going nuclear.

Straw said Thursday that Britain is seeking a "nuclear-free Middle East." He said that Iran and Israel were the only two countries left that posed "potential threats" now that Iraq and Libya's nuclear aspirations have been neutralized.

The foreign minister, who has made headlines in the past criticizing the Jewish state, conceded that removing the Iranian threat was indeed more urgent than the Israeli one. "If you want to see a nuclear-free Middle East, you've got to remove that threat from Iran, including the rhetorical threat to wipe Israel off the face of the map," Straw told British Channel 4 television. "Once you've done that, then we can get on to work in respect of Israel."

Arutz Sheva

[Tom Joad]

1. A nuclear-free middle east? That would be fair. US would never support

such a call.

[Coastie for Truth]

9. What about a nuclear free

US, UK, France, Russia, India, Pakistan, Iran, North Korea, and Israel. The Cold War is over.

If you are seriously for nuclear disarmament - it should be universal and world wide. If you are for selective nuclear disarmament - .........

And why is the UK selling US nuclear technology to Japan?

[redphish]

2. The rupubs would never do anything against the will of Israel.

Just look at bush's recent India - Pakistan maneuver. They want the instability as long as it leans in their direction. The whole point of the exercise is to insure a steady flow of income into their own pockets and to support their twisted idealogical beliefs.

:banghead:

[leveymg]

3. If Britain restrains Israel from preempting Iran, then Straw's

statement makes sense. But, if that bit about removing "that threat from Iran" implies British complicity in the use of force against Iran, then the UK is just hastening the onset of war. Such a war would quickly go nuclear and be a huge disaster for the world.

[xchrom]

4. scratching my head -- didn't britain

help israel with their nuclear program?

why wasn't this worht talking about before now?

geez can the west ever play fair and square with the middle re: israel and her neighbors?

[adriennui]

10. at that time

britain wasn't overrun with muslim malcontents. mr. straw is just trying to be expedient.

[barb162]

5. STRAW: IRAN MUST CLARIFY NUCLEAR INTENTIONS (10/03/06)

(Straw is not really being very strong on Israel in the Foreign Office edited version of the interview; seems to be mostly about the nuts in Iran, including how the Foreign Office is titling this interview.)

STRAW: IRAN MUST CLARIFY NUCLEAR INTENTIONS (10/03/06)


EDITED TRANSCRIPT OF AN INTERVIEW BY THE FOREIGN SECRETARY, JACK STRAW, WITH CHANNEL 4 NEWS ON THURSDAY 9 MARCH 2006

INTERVIEWER:
Let's pick up on one of the key things with which this week began. A clear statement from the Americans that they have hard evidence that technology's being transported from Iran in to Southern Iraq and being used against the, the Coalition forces there. Is there anything firm in that evidence that you've seen or heard?

FOREIGN SECRETARY:
I'm not clear what precise evidence the Americans had in mind when they said that. We've made clear ourselves in the past (indistinct) two or three months ago that we had reason to believe that some of the improvised explosive devices used against British troops and other targets in Southern Iraq were of a Hezbollah design which originated from Iran. I mean that's the evidence we have.
snip
FOREIGN SECRETARY:
...look, what there is concern about and this is...you know, a matter of fact as well, is that Iran, the (indistinct) the regime in Iran has had a long history since the revolution of backing a series of terrorist groups and notably Hezbollah in Southern Lebanon, Hamas in the Occupied Territories, both of which (indistinct) have operated against Israel, and some groups more recently in Iraq. There's no question about that. And they have this very equivocal view about terrorism. On the one hand they demand from the West and from people like myself that we should ban a terrorist organisation called MEK operating against the Iranian people, and indeed when I was Home Secretary did indeed ban that organisation. On the other hand they say but ah, killing of Jews is all right, what Hamas and Hezbollah do is okay. And if there's collateral damage from those organisations that's in the cause of freedom fighting, it's not something that we accept but …

INTERVIEWER:
Well equally they talk, equally they talk about double standards on the nuclear issue. They say you're getting at us over our nuclear plans whatever they may be, at the same time when it comes to Israel it's double standards...they have a point.

FOREIGN SECRETARY:
...they do say that and let me, let me deal with this straight out. First of all Iran is a member of the Non Proliferation Treaty and it's entered in to very clear obligations which at the moment they're failing to meet and that's not a matter of speculation or intelligence, it's a matter of fact. Israel, Pakistan and India are the three key countries who refuse to sign up to the Non Proliferation Treaty. Now we want them to sign up to it, we wish them to go non nuclear, but they can not be accused directly of breaching obligations because they've not entered in to those.
snip

http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1007029391629&a=KArticle&aid=1140689398758

[Jim Sagle]

6. Hey Straw, jack this.

[DemFromMem]

7. Oh yeah, that would really be helpful

Israel has nukes to keep out the Irans and Syrias and for good reason given that they are massively outnumbered by their neighbors. When the Syria, Iran, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, etc. join Jordan and Egypt, then it's time to talk about dismantling the nuclear weapons. This has nothing to do with the Palestinians much as many would like to claim.

[Coastie for Truth]

8. Right?

Only after Pakistan and Iran are disarmed - and let's add US, UK, France, PRC, India, North Korea, Russia to the list for nuclear disarmement.

BTW - what is about British Nuclear Fuels PLC selling the Westinghouse Nuclear Group (if you are from Pittsburgh - it's everything that Siemens and Bechtel didn't buy). Kind of a P&O to Dubai Ports in the nuclear field. Yes I did work there - that's where I met Ivan Itkin and Kent State Massacre parent Arthur Krause (Allison's father).

Toshiba? They make the batteries, the alternators, and the electric motors for the Prius - what's next? My Toyota and Honda dealers selling me a nuclear powered car powered with a Westinghouse-BNF-Toshiba nuclear reactor?