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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: unclewest who wrote (12524)	12/3/2001 6:34:30 AM
From: unclewest	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 281500

in a discussion about three days ago rumsfeld addressed the military shortages caused by nine years of budget and personnel reductions. the money to correct the equipment shortages will be available...though it will take time to spend it. replacing the 650,000-700,000 lost personnel will be much more difficult. is reinstatement of the draft next?

To: unclewest who wrote (12524)	12/3/2001 8:07:31 AM
From: maceng2	Respond to of 281500

WWIII is already upon us uw, I hear what you and Big Bull are saying, and sadly that may indeed be the case. We could look to see what occurred in Vietnam and Korea we can get an idea of what could possibly happen next. Also, my (bad) recollection was that Korea was only really stopped my McArther threatening to use nukes. These days that kind of threat might have it's bluffed called, and we all know what that means. So, yes huge dangers and many millions of lives at stake. Afghanistan was a good military risk despite all the whining in the media because of certain advantages. The lack of food, the conventional type war, the terrain enabling good use of high tech smart weapons. Israel/Palistine is more like a Northern Ireland police action. Civilian deaths, peace keeper ambushes and deaths, inability to return fire except under special conditions, very difficult to see if the presence of troops would make things any better over a period of time. Just got to hope and pray I guess. Here is an update on Israel situation. ========================================================== Arrests are a charade, says Israel Israel has dismissed the arrest of 110 suspected Islamic militants by Yasser Arafat's security forces as a charade. The arrests are aimed at preventing Israeli retaliation for weekend suicide bombings and shooting attacks that killed 26 people. Several Cabinet ministers have demanded that Israel expel Arafat, and reporters accompanying Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said he is weighing up the proposal. Mr Sharon has returned from the US after a meeting with George W Bush at the White House. He headed directly to a special session of the security Cabinet convened to decide on Israel's response. There is no indication Bush has sought to persuade the Israeli leader to hold back. Arafat "must do everything in his power to find those who murdered innocent Israelis and bring them to justice," the president said. Israeli troops further tightened travel restrictions on Palestinians, blockading towns in the West Bank. In Israel, police were on its highest alert in case of further terror attacks, and thousands of officers patrolled malls and markets. In Haifa, where 15 passengers and bystanders were killed in a suicide bombing on a city bus Sunday, policewomen with cocked weapons guarded at a pedestrian crossing in a residential area. "We are at war," said a banner headline in the Yediot Ahronot daily, accompanied by two rows of photos of the victims, including 10 teenagers killed late Saturday in back-to-back suicide attacks at a pedestrian mall in Jerusalem. In Israel, there was growing pressure on Sharon to take harsh action. Former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a hard-liner who is expected to mount a challenge against Sharon in the next election, wrote in Maariv that unless Arafat crushes the militant groups in the next few hours, "Israel will have to destroy his regime." Netanyahu's call was backed by leading ministers from Sharon's Likud Party. ananova.com

To: unclewest who wrote (12524)	12/5/2001 11:19:53 AM
From: maceng2	Respond to of 281500

New moves for the Iraqi opposition Iraq, Politics, 12/4/2001 The Kuwaiti daily al-Rai al-Am has disclosed quoting Iraqi opposition sources that there are contacts between several leaders and officers of the Iraqi opposition abroad to form a military council planning to topple the regime of Saddam Hussein and filling the political, administrative and military vacuum after toppling it, noting that that these contacts achieved great strides amid an Arab, regional and international interest that might be changed into a political recognition in the coming phase. In press statements, the sources abstained from unveiling steps to be taken so far on the ground of having care on the secrecy of work aiming at extending links with leaders and army officers of the Iraqi army and the armed forces inside Iraq and to make them involved in the responsibilities later. The sources said that the former Iraqi army chief of staff Lt. Gen. Nizar Abdul Karim al-Khazranji, is considered one of the prominent candidates for the presidency of the military council which will include 600 army officers of various grades. The paper indicated that the observers did not rule out the implementation of the Afghani scene and the moves of the northern alliance forces, as well as the attacks of the American warplanes against Iraq. The paper indicated the readiness of a delegation of the opposition national conference led by Ahmad al- Jalabi to hold a new visit to Washington to complete the talks with the American officials held earlier this month. arabicnews.com