Wikileaks Dump: Iran Has Nuke Missiles That Can Reach Western Europe
Posted by Jim Hoft on Sunday, November 28, 2010, 3:59 PM
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, second left, reviews, Iran’s Shahab-3 missile, a weapon capable of carrying a nuclear warhead and reaching Europe, Israel and U.S. forces in the Middle East back in 2005. (LJ World)
Iran received help from North Korea and has missiles that can reach European capitals in Western Europe.
The New York Times reported:
Secret American intelligence assessments have concluded that Iran has obtained a cache of advanced missiles, based on a Russian design, that are much more powerful than anything Washington has publicly conceded that Tehran has in its arsenal, diplomatic cables show.
Iran obtained 19 of the missiles from North Korea, according to a cable dated Feb. 24 of this year. The cable is a detailed, highly classified account of a meeting between top Russian officials and an American delegation led by Vann H. Van Diepen, an official with the State Department’s nonproliferation division who, as a national intelligence officer several years ago, played a crucial role in the 2007 assessment of Iran’s nuclear capacity.
The missiles could for the first time give Iran the capacity to strike at capitals in Western Europe or easily reach Moscow, and American officials warned that their advanced propulsion could speed Iran’s development of intercontinental ballistic missiles.
There has been scattered but persistent speculation on the topic since 2006, when fragmentary reports surfaced that North Korea might have sold Iran missiles based on a Russian design called the R-27, once used aboard Soviet submarines to carry nuclear warheads. In the unclassified world, many arms control experts concluded that isolated components made their way to Iran, but there has been little support for the idea that complete missiles, with their huge thrusters, had been secretly shipped.
The Feb. 24 cable, which is among those obtained by WikiLeaks and made available to a number of news organizations, makes it clear that American intelligence agencies believe that the complete shipment indeed took place, and that Iran is taking pains to master the technology in an attempt to build a new generation of missiles. The missile intelligence also suggests far deeper military — and perhaps nuclear — cooperation between North Korea and Iran than was previously known. At the request of the Obama administration, The New York Times has agreed not to publish the text of the cable.
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Published May 16, 2012 at 7:37 pm - 46 Comments
arnonerik commented:
How long will Obama wait before Iran is neutralized or has he decided that it’s a good thing for those apocalyptical religious nuts to have the means to hit us with the big one.
Granny commented:
And knowing this, TheWon wants us to sign a treaty that would get rid of half of our nukes? I wonder if this is why all the pressure on Israel to simply march into the boats?
Don Rodrigo commented:
“Iran Has Nuke Missiles That Can Reach Western Europe”
No it doesn’t. It has nuclear-capable missiles, which could carry an Iranian nuke once the Iranians can make one small enough for the missile’s payload limitation.
This is not nitpicking. It’s important to keep a level head about this issue. Let’s fight the reality and not the phantom.
Bobbi commented:
so why is the Obama Administration gagging the text of the cable about the precise nature of the nukes, or “nuclear capable” missiles?
RedBeard commented:
It’s difficult to imagine that Israel will sit still much longer.
Bonny Kate commented:
A couple missiles landing in the middle of Rome or Paris should gets these Europeans to concentrate on something other than hating America all the livelong day. But maybe not.
Conservative Ken commented:
#3 Don Rodrigo
You can bet they are close. Once Israeli Intel gets 100% confirmation, I’m sure there will be plenty of shovel ready jobs in Iran. I’d love to see the Moussad make it look like an accident.
jim m commented:
Decisions, decisions… Who to nuke first? Moscow in retribution for the Chechin situation? Or Western Europe for being, well Western Europe? My guess is Europe due o their reputation for supine appeasement.
Mr. Potato Head commented:
How about we redistribute some of our wealth, kaboom!
Khan Krum commented:
Can we start using the term AXIS OF EVIL again?
Mike123 commented:
I wonder if Wikileaks is really a CIA operation.
No Man commented:
Hope!! and Change!!!
Perfected democrat commented:
Not to worry, there’s only one city on the planet the chimp wants to vaporize in short order, Tel Aviv; the rest they will conquer thru demographics and intimidation…
bg commented:
++
we know..
==
grizzlybare commented:
Let us be thankful that in these times of peril the best and brightest
among us are at the helm. Our leader stands defiant…a Slurpee in one
hand, a Marlboro in the other….and 12 stitches in his lower lip.
apodoca commented:
WikiLeaks makes Obama’s fecklessness more contemptible.
apodoca commented:
If y’all think the Iranians will fire off any nukes, y’all need your heads examined. Israel has put a major spanner in the works via Stuxnet. The Iranians are likely deathly scared of firing any of their explosives. You never know what will turn around and head for home again.
wow commented:
#11 November 28, 2010 at 4:51 pm
Mike123 commented:
Now there’s an idea.
wow commented:
#15 November 28, 2010 at 5:30 pm
grizzlybare commented:
Ed commented:
debkafile reported about this years ago, yet, no one listened during the time. Iran and Korea has been collaborating on technology sharing, particularly nuclear and missile technology for years.
the question now is what should be done? Obama and democrast adamantly opposed Bush’s missile defense, now, it might be too late.
GOOD commented:
In WWII the Europeans counted on the U.S. to destroy Nazi Germany. Now while bashing Israel, they count on her to destroy the threat from Iran. Cowards.