JERUSALEM, May 26, 2009
Israel: Venezuela Supplying Iran Nukes
Secret Israeli Report Claims Bolivia Also Providing Nuclear Material To Isolated Regime
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(CBS/ AP)
The two South American countries are known to have close ties with Iran, but this is the first allegation that they are involved in the development of Iran's nuclear program, considered a strategic threat by Israel.
"There are reports that Venezuela supplies Iran with uranium for its nuclear program," the Foreign Ministry document states, referring to previous Israeli intelligence conclusions. It added, "Bolivia also supplies uranium to Iran."
The report concludes that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is trying to undermine the United States by supporting Iran.
Venezuela and Bolivia are close allies, and both regimes have a history of opposing U.S. foreign policy and Israeli actions. Venezuela expelled the Israeli ambassador during Israel's offensive in Gaza this year, and Israel retaliated by expelling the Venezuelan envoy. Bolivia cut ties with Israel over the offensive.
There was no immediate comment from officials in Venezuela or Bolivia on the report's allegations.
The three-page document about Iranian activities in Latin America was prepared in advance of a visit to South America by Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon, who will attend a conference of the Organization of American States in Honduras next week. Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman is also scheduled to visit the region.
Israel considers Iran a serious threat because of its nuclear program, development of long-range missiles and frequent references by its president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, to Israel's destruction. Israel dismisses Iran's insistence that its nuclear program is peaceful, charging that the Iranians are building nuclear weapons.
Iran says its nuclear work is aimed only at producing energy. Its enrichment of uranium has increased concerns about its program because that technology can be used both to produce fuel for power plants and to build bombs.
Israel has been pressing for world action to stop the Iranian program. While saying it prefers diplomatic action, Israel has not taken its military option off the table. Experts believe Israel is capable of destroying some of Iran's nuclear facilities in air strikes.
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Iran, under Ahmadinejad, has strengthened its ties with both Venezuela and Bolivia, where it opened an embassy last year. Its alliance with the left-led nations is based largely on their shared antagonism to the United States but is also a way for Iran to lessen its international isolation.
Since Ahmadinejad's rise to power, Tehran has been promoting an aggressive policy aimed at bolstering its ties with Latin American countries with the declared goal of 'bringing America to its knees.'
From Israeli reportThe Israeli government report did not say where the uranium that it alleged the two countries were supplying originated from.
Bolivia has uranium deposits. Venezuela is not currently mining its own estimated 50,000 tons of untapped uranium reserves, according to an analysis published in December by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. The Carnegie report said, however, that recent collaboration with Iran in strategic minerals has generated speculation that Venezuela could mine uranium for Iran.
The Israeli government report also charges that the Iran-backed Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon have set up cells in Latin America. It says Venezuela has issued permits that allow Iranian residents to travel freely in South America.
The report concludes, "Since Ahmadinejad's rise to power, Tehran has been promoting an aggressive policy aimed at bolstering its ties with Latin American countries with the declared goal of 'bringing America to its knees."'
The document says Venezuela and Bolivia are violating the United Nations Security Council's economic sanctions with their aid to Iran.
As allies against the U.S., Ahmadinejad and Chavez have set up a $200 billion fund aimed at garnering the support of more South American countries for the cause of "liberation from the American imperialism," according to the report.
Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor refused to comment about the secret report.
© MMIX, The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Did you engage your brain before typing your comments?
Any person living today who is decended from a former slave is by all aspects of the law an American citizen. Why should they leave the country to relieve the economy?
What Lincoln "should" have done as you so aptly put it is now irrelavent.
Are you by chance directly related to the American Indian? If not then you should be real quiet about saying who should or should not be in the country. Are you to he held accountable or responsible for your forefathers?
Your comments posted at 8:30 have been reported. Your last words there are completely out of place. Stoking religious hatred is uncalled for as well as an insult to all peace loving Muslim citizens in the great country we have.
It was not the Iranians or Arabs who killed 6 million Jews, why don't you cowards go and attack Europe who killed so many Jews. Instead all you are doing is killing unarmed children of Arabs and muslims who allowed you to have a homeland. ISRAEL is the real joke here.
Posted by pirjan at 6:28 AM : May 27, 2009
It won't take a nuclear attack to wake up Amadinajead. It will only take a couple of conventional Tomahawk missles down the cooling towers of Irans Nuclear refineries. As for the Iranian people I feel deeply sorry for them to have to live under a regime of fanatical thugs. Freedom and Liberty should be for everyone!
Posted by kooreh at 9:57 PM
First of all, you apparently do not know your Persian history. what about the Persian Wars from 492-449 BC)? Ardashir I in the 600s. What about Tahir in 851? You want something more recent? What about Nader Shah in the 1700s...they attacked Afghanistan. Want something even MORE recently? Well, explain the American hostages of 1979. Explain the killing of the Israeli Olympic team. Hearing another person try to defend Iran as just "defending themselves" is a joke. Iran itself is a joke. Iran is basically a high school freshman mentally...children with no sense of virtually anything other than reaction.
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And on the other side of the coin ALL grain shipments which the arab nations buy from the west to survive will immediatly be cut off.
Wanna bet who will last longer? I would bet the farm that we would get along easier with LESS oil then you would with NO food... don't forget we are NOT dependant on your supplies
The Democrats are aggressive in pushing American Imperialism through culture, and the media, and through aid programs. Along with espousing the value of free speech and personal freedoms, these nations also get pornography, abortion, homosexuality, crime and gangs, drugs, materialism, and an overall diminished spiritual existence. Obviously, these backward nations are crazy to resist all that the Democrats have to offer them ! Obama has outlined a path to utopia here, what's the problem?
Posted by hoseobama at 5:12 PM : May 26, 2009
I agree
Israel and the US will have no choice. I mean wake up. If 50% of Israel is ready to bomb Iran right now, imagine how upset that hive of hornets will be if you go nuclear on them.
It will no longer be necessary to make a pilgrimage to Mecca - it will come to you. Indeed, if your particles aren't circling the earth too. In which case the two of you shall become one.
And, if the bomb goes off in the US; well, let's just look at the facts when you took out two buildings - we took out two countries. I'm not here to judge if that was warranted or not - but it is a fact - it happened. I suspect that a nuke used in the US will cost every Islamic nation out there, eventually.
I wouldn't be surprised if liberal views became totally supressed for many decades to come.. Imagine trying to shield those that allowed/caused a nuke to go off in the US.
Hugo would certainly have his worst nightmare come true via lead posioning.
Alas, Babylon.
Any rednecks, gop lapdogs, or Klansman can talk about democrats being cowards all they want, [80% veterans] which to the world just magnifies their ignorance. As a veteran and father of a veteran who has relatives fighting for this country sense 1790 census I do not get upset at these jerks anymore, because most of the people I respect, who are veterans have some common sense and do not throw bad money after good money or trust anyone or group after they screw them over, like these clowns did.
As for civilians I believe they should invest in at least make it mandatory reading of real american history. It seems many who actually can read and understand the Constitution realize we made a mistake after the civil war, that we Yankees should have given all of the property of the southern traitors guilty of slaving / torturing / over to their x-slaves. And if they protested impression and press into labor rebuilding the northern states for ten or twenty years or act like they would us if they had won, put them up against a wall and then shoot.
That is the least we can do for their disloyal treasonous attack against our country, as the fifth columnists that all of them surely were and obviously still are. After all even they admit they thought they were above the law and the Constitution and never wanted to understand what democracy is, so I say they their dogma is not relevant! Remember, they are just corporate lackeys and parasites. As for real cowards look for the tidal Sunshine Patriots or NeoNaziCon , both mean people who like to talk war, but never show-up, like Rush [4-F for a boil on his butt] and George [deserted] and the other despicable gop leaders, none of which has a pair in the entire gop! [greedy oil perverts]
Any rednecks, gop lapdogs, or Klansman can talk about democrats being cowards all they want, [80% veterans] which to the world just magnifies their ignorance. As a veteran and father of a veteran who has relatives fighting for this country sense 1790 census I do not get upset at these jerks anymore, because most of the people I respect, who are veterans have some common sense and do not throw bad money after good money or trust anyone or group after they screw them over, like these clowns did.
As for civilians I believe they should invest in at least make it mandatory reading of real american history. It seems many who actually can read and understand the Constitution realize we made a mistake after the civil war, that we Yankees should have given all of the property of the southern traitors guilty of slaving / torturing / over to their x-slaves. And if they protested impression and press into labor rebuilding the northern states for ten or twenty years or act like they would us if they had won, put them up against a wall and then shoot.
That is the least we can do for their disloyal treasonous attack against our country, as the fifth columnists that all of them surely were and obviously still are. After all even they admit they thought they were above the law and the Constitution and never wanted to understand what democracy is, so I say they their dogma is not relevant! Remember, they are just corporate lackeys and parasites. As for real cowards look for the tidal Sunshine Patriots or NeoNaziCon , both mean people who like to talk war, but never show-up, like Rush [4-F for a boil on his butt] and George [deserted] and the other despicable gop leaders, none of which has a pair in the entire gop! [greedy oil perverts]
North Korea one of a few communist government is funded and support by China since long.
Only last a few years high crude oil prices made Venezuela & Iran to bid big prices for such technology. Not only US big oil benefited from high crude oil prices, so are other countries and they have lot of spare money for such activities. It China which armed Pakistan, North Korea & it will be Russia which may giving atomic bomb, missile technology to Iran as US forces are stationed for more than 6 years and going to stay even longer. So they do not want US to go another step what so ever.
Israel will take care of it in a matter of time anyway.
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If ignorance was painful your scream would be heard from sea to shining sea......
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Shut up........... no, really.... stuff it......
Posted by enjoylife63
There are plenty of soldiers who have fought and/or died for this country who are Democrats. Are you calling them cowards you worthless piece of dung!?!?!?!
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