Increase Progress for Peace

► http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-15266992

US disrupts 'Iranian terror plot'
www.bbc.co.uk
The US says it has broken up a plot by agents linked to Iran to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to Washington using explosives.

► http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-15269348

US to pressure Iran over 'plot'
www.bbc.co.uk
The US says it will increase international pressure on Iran after it charges two Iranians with conspiracy to assassinate the Saudi ambassador in Washington.

► http://www.euronews.net/2011/10/12/us-accuses-iran-of-planning-terror-attacks/

US accuses Iran of planning terror attacks
www.euronews.net
world news - An Iranian man has appeared in a New York court accused of plotting to kill the Saudi Arabian ambassador to the United States.

► http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-15325686

Shock over 'Iran plot' suspect
www.bbc.co.uk
Shock and disbelief in southern Texas home of Manssor Arbabsiar, arrested over an alleged Iranian-backed plot to kill the Saudi envoy to the US.

► http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-15344831

Iran pours scorn on Saudi 'plot'
www.bbc.co.uk
Iran's President Ahmadinejad says US allegations of a plot to assassinate a Saudi envoy are as false as its claims were about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

► http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/11/manssor-arbabsiar-iran-assassination-plot-plea_n_1006013.html

Manssor Arbabsiar, Charged In D.C. Assassination Plot, To Plead Not Guilty
www.huffingtonpost.com
NEW YORK -- An American citizen charged with plotting to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the United States intends to plead not guilty at a formal hearing later this month, his court-appointed attorney said Tuesday afternoon.

►http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/national-security/mansour-arbabsiar-recalled-as-upbeat-about-finances-during-summer-encounter/2011/10/12/gIQA3nnOgL_story.html

Mansour Arbabsiar recalled as upbeat about finances during summer encounter
www.washingtonpost.com
An old friend remembers Mansour Arbabsiar — the man accused of conspiring to kill the Saudi ambassador — with lots of cash in hand, the picture of optimism, during an August encounter in Iran’s Kurdistan province.

► http://www.globalsecurity.org/intell/world/iran/qods.htm

Qods (Jerusalem) Force, Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC - Pasdaran) Iran Intelligence
www.globalsecurity.org
While the Constitution of Iran entrusts the military with guarding Iran's territorial integrity and political independence, it gives the Revolutionary Guard [Pasdaran] the responsibility of guarding the Revolution itself.

► http://www.jamestown.org/programs/gta/single/?tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=37058&cHash=30481c30cd

The Jamestown Foundation: Can Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Maintain its Operational Capa
www.jamestown.org
One of the only books of its kind in existence, Pakistan's Troubled Frontier examines the militants and movements in Pakistan's volatile northwest region and offers expert analysis that is invaluable to today's policymakingcommunity.

► http://www.cfr.org/iran/irans-revolutionary-guards/p14324

Iran's Revolutionary Guards - Council on Foreign Relations
www.cfr.org
In the aftermath of the June 2009 presidential election, Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps has become major to the regime's power projection. Some analysts have seen the guard's hand in a creeping militarization of Iran's domestic policy.

► http://www.fas.org/irp/world/iran/qods/index.html

Qods (Jerusalem) Force, Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC - Pasdaran) Iran Intelligence Agenci
www.fas.org
A profile of Iranian intelligence agencies.

► http://www.economist.com/node/14327633

Showing who's boss
www.economist.com
God and mammonAFP BACK in 2007 the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) announced an important change of mission.

► http://articles.latimes.com/2011/oct/13/world/la-fg-iran-banking-20111014

U.S. considers sanctions on Iran's central bank
articles.latimes.com
The Obama administration said it was "actively" considering sanctioning Iran's central bank in retaliation for an alleged Iranian assassination plot, a move that could severely damage Iran's economy.

► http://saudiembassy.net/embassy/adelbio.aspx

Ambassador Adel A. Al-Jubeir
His Excellency Adel A. Al-Jubeir was appointed by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz as Ambassador to the United States on January 29, 2007. Ambassador Al-Jubeir presented his credentials to President George W. Bush at the White House on February 27, 2007.

► http://english.iribnews.ir/newsbody.aspx?ID=15840

IribNews.IR News Page
IRIB central news agency, main english news are broadcasted by islamic republic of iran broadcasting - IRIB News Official Web Site

► http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/netanyahu-and-obama-are-at-point-of-no-return-1.266672

Netanyahu and Obama are at point of no return
www.haaretz.com
Obama has decided his moderate Mideast coalition is more important than Netanyahu's extremist one.

► http://af.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idAFTRE79F19G20111016

Iran could scrap directly elected president - leader | Reuters
af.reuters.com
TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran could do away with the post of a directly elected president, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Sunday, in what might be a warning to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and possible successors not to overstep the executive's limited powers.

The United States governement has accused Iran's military involvement in the assassination attempt of Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the United States, Adel al - Jubeir. So far, according to American officials, there were two suspects in these efforts. The first man was Gholam Shakuri, members of the Quds force which was affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps. The second man was Manssor Arbabsiar, who was arrested on 29 September when he arrived at the airport John F. Kennedy from Mexico.

Arbabsiar, 56, who is a U.S. citizen and holds the Iranian passport, in cooperation with U.S. authorities after being arrested. According to him, Shakuri is still in Iran. On Tuesday (October 11, 2011), Arbabsiar appeared in the Manhattan courtroom wearing a blue shirt and jeans. His hair was gray and there was a scar in his left cheek.

As stated in court documents, the murder plan started in May 2011 when Arbabsiar approaching someone in Mexico who claimed as the drug cartels member. The man was about to recruited by Arbabsiar to assist an assassination attempt. But, it turned out, he was the informant of drug agency, DEA, which working undercover.

According to the informant, Arbabsiar handed over the money worth U.S. $ 100 thousand in July and August as a down payment of a tariff of U.S. $1,5 million. Murder plan was later approved by Shakuri. Through telephone conversations intercepted by U.S. authorities, even Shakuri ordered Arbabsiar to launch an attack as soon as possible.

U.S. foreign ministries assessed, it was quite possible the Iranian government were designing the activities of terrorism against diplomats from certain countries, including the U.S.. On that basis, Hillary Clinton hoped the international community through a variety of sanctions to punish Iran.

U.S. allegations on Iran provoked strong reactions from the Land of the Mullahs. Iran's ambassador to the UN, Mohammad Khazaee accused the United States has a political motivation behind the accusations. Iranian parliament speaker Ali Larijani even suggested it was a U.S. effort to divert the issue of domestic economic crisis.

The Iranian government was urging the U.S. to provide the access to meet Arbabsiar. Tehran warned would give the harsh response in case of improper actions to its citizens. "Any action that does not correspond to Iran, both associated with politics and security, will be dealt with harshly by Iran," said the Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei on October 17, 2011. He called Washington to design a plan to divert attention from Occupy Wall Street's protest.

Arbabsiar's arrest had been announced by Washington on Tuesday (11 Oct), and Iran claimed the murder was planned as a "comedy show". Skepticism to the plan was also voiced by the experts and officials of Washington itself. Even the FBI's chief called the allegation was more like a Hollywood screenplay. But, the intelligence committees in U.S. Congress, on Sunday (16 Oct) stated that the allegations were very real and should be taken very seriously. Dianne Feinstein said that she was also initially skeptical when she was notified about the case. But then Feinstein believed the accusation was very real. "We recommend our country does not have to look like want to fight," Feinstein said in a Fox News Sunday program. " But we must stop the bad behavior, without war."

President Barack Obama said Iran would get a very harsh penalty for this incident. The military sanctions option has surfaced after tensions between Iran and the west associated with its nuclear program. A U.S. official has proposed to impose the sanction by freezing the relation to Iran's Central Bank. If it is done, Tehran is believed to be having trouble in accepting its oil export payments.

So far, the chairman of intelligence committees in U.S. House of Representatives, Mike Rogers has given the approval. "Give pressure on China and Russia! And say, listen up! You will be in the countries involved in terrorism or siding with the international community!" he said in the program This Week on ABC.

On the other hand, the Iranian foreign ministry has called Swiss charge d'affaires which represented the U.S. interests in Iran. That was done because of diplomatic relations between Washington and Tehran have been broken since the Islamic revolution of Iran in 1979. In contrast, the Iranian diplomatic mission in America was represented by the Pakistani embassy.

"It's no doubt that the U.S. allegations are baseless," said a ministry official to representatives of Switzerland, as reported by Iranian radio station, IRIB. "But to give the personal information about defendant and consular access to him was the U.S. government tasks. The delay in granting the access is a violation of international law and the U.S. government's responsibility," said an official who did not want his name mentioned.
*****

..... ...United States truly overwhelmed by the actions of the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu in March last year. Very disturbed by the attitude of Netanyahu, U.S. to throw the hard words that had not been thrown to any Jewish leaders, "It's embarrassing!"

The emergence of hardline figures such as Netanyahu as the Jewish leader made the U.S. more trouble when the U.S. had been distraught because it could not make another hard-line leader in the Middle East region to be benign, he is the president of Iran Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

The two leaders who were hostile to each other as destined to be present simultaneously in the conflict region. They were equally fond of to catapult the controversial rhetoric which could spread the embers of hostility, both domestically and surrounding region.

Both were really trying the U.S. power and credibility in the Middle East and destroyed the new order of America's relations with Muslims which had been declared by President Obama in 2009.

Netanyahu accused Iran of seeking the nuclear bombs to meet the ambitions of Ahmadinejad to wipe the Israel off the world's map. To face it, Netanyahu urged the U.S. to revive the peace with the Palestine and Arab states.

On the contrary, Ahmadinejad warned that the collapse of U.S. mediation would support his doctrine that resistance was on the weapon, not on a negotiation, and it was the only way to reclaim the Arab's land annexed by the Israel, especially the Jerusalem. His call for Muslims to defend the city sacred to Muslims, Jews and Christians echoed throughout the Arab and Islamic world. No doubt if the Netanyahu plan to build 1600 new homes in West Bank (which was annexed by Israel in the Jerusalem area) sparked outrage from his loyal listeners.

"Ahmadinejad is very frightened" wrote the columnist in the daily Haaretz, Akiva Eldar. "Jerusalem is the arena for Iran and its regional allies to fight with the U.S. and its allies in the Middle East."

Iran expanded its influence in the region by supporting the Hezbollah group in Lebanon and Hamas in Palestine, which made fun of the peace talks between Israel and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas that was supported by the West.

Netanyahu finally did apologize to the United States for the announcement of the plan, which was really insulting its allies, because it happened to coincide with the arrival of Joe Biden.

The U.S. failure to mediate the peace talks between Israel - Palestine would be a victory for Ahmadinejad, who claimed himself as the leader of resistance against the U.S. and Israeli hegemony in the Middle East.

On other hand, the tensions caused by Jerusalem case would make Washington in trouble to rally the support of Arab countries in imposing the sanction on Iran, related to its nuclear program.

For Obama administration, the success of reviving the peace talks between Israel - Palestine was very important to expand the U.S. influence, including its efforts to fight the Al Qaeda, creating the stability in Iraq and Afghanistan, to stop the Iran's nuclear ambitions and set back the U.S relations with Arab countries and Islamic world.

Increasing tensions in the Middle East, again, it could happen anytime, would be further complicating the Obama's effort to tame the conflict in region , was coupled with the problems faced in the country.

I think Obama does not have the time and energy for it now. He's got the economic agenda that must be saved. I predict that Washington will extend the Israel - Palestine's negotiation in order to focus on dealing with Iran. They're trying to build the international consensus and impose sanction, which it will certainly get a strong reaction from Iran. So, if they can maintain the process continues to run, they can be likened to driving with an automatic pilot. Although it's not achieve anything, at least they can win that front.

The dispute over Jerusalem, which could widen the confrontation between Iran and Israel, in fact it is the advantageous to Netanyahu and Ahmadinejad. The confrontation could help the Israeli leader to maintain the right-wing coalition of hard-line, and boosting the appeal of Israel to the Israelis who worried about Iran, though many were worried that the policy could damage the relations with the U.S

Meanwhile, Ahmadinejad would use the threat of Israeli or U.S. military strike against Iranian nuclear facilities to mobilize the national sentiment and weaken the opposition action against the legitimacy of his power. At the same time, Obama was getting stuck because he had to avoid war with Iran, and to save the momentum of Middle East conflict resolution, with Jerusalem as its heart.

Dialogue bids and the U.S. nuclear deal has been rejected by Ahmadinejad. Therefore, the U.S. continued to pursue the tougher sanctions to stop Israel attacking Iran, which it would potentially create a war in the surrounding region.

Now, the U.S. credibility and its interests are at stake in efforts to deal with conflict that involved the emotions and attention of other countries, far from the "Holy Land", especially the Muslim countries. What is clear now is the tensions, problems and others in the Middle East has a huge impact. It gives a strategic value in the U.S "operating areas", which including Iran, Afghanistan, Iraq and most of the Arab world.
*****
(CZ-LA1018)

► http://ciscazarmansyah.blogspot.com/2011/07/knick-knacks-about-irans-nuclear.html

Newstories: Knick-Knacks About Iran's Nuclear
ciscazarmansyah.blogspot.com

► http://www.spiegel.de/international/topic/german_foreign_policy/archiv.html

German Foreign Policy - SPIEGEL ONLINE - Nachrichten
www.spiegel.de
Daily news, analysis and opinion from Europe's leading newsmagazine and Germany's top news Web site.

►http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2081566,00.html

Should Germany Sell Tanks to Saudi Arabia?
www.time.com
Reports of a weapons deal between Berlin and Riyadh has sparked protests from human-rights advocates, church leaders and, most surprisingly, some of Chancellor Angela Merkel's closest party allies are at a loss to justify the sale of weapons to a nation with a history of oppression.


► http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,773931,00.html

Contradiction Coalition: Tank Deal Reveals New Arms Exports Approach - SPIEGEL ONLINE - News - Inter
www.spiegel.de
A secretive plan to sell tanks to Saudia Arabia has caused a furor within Germany's governing coalition, members of which are demanding an explanation. The deal, which violates a tradition of avoiding weapons sales in conflict areas, signals a fundamental shift in German arms trade.

---

The German government reportedly was planning to sell 270 the latest model tanks to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as the efforts to counter Iranian influence in the Middle East region. Based on reports magazine Der Spiegel, German Chancellor Angela Merkel approved the plan to sell it in a secret meeting on June 27, 2011.

Markel expressed the approval after obtaining the green light from Israel government and the United States. Both of these allies argued that Saudi Arabia's strong military would serve as a counterweight to Iranian forces. After all, according to King Abdullah as simulated source Der Spiegel, Iran is a neighboring country that should be avoided. "Iran launches missiles scares the world," said the King.

The tank type would be sold to Saudi Arabia Germany was Leopard 2A7 +. Tanks made by Munich-based company, Krauss-Maffei Weggmann, have weighs 67.5 tons, 10.97 meters long, and equipped with 120-millimeter cannon, and capable of releasing the missile as far as 4 kilometers. Leopard fleet would replace the Saudi's obsolete tanks. From the 1000 units owned by the Arabia kingdom, only a third which have modern furnishings, the US-made M1A2 Abrams.

Through the sales package of more than 200 Leopard tanks, the company Krauss-Maffei Wegmann would handle the maintenance, training, and replacement of parts in the future. The package was estimated to be worth at least 5 billion euros (about USD 6.9 trillion).

In terms of economics, the sales of Leopard tanks fleet would benefit Germany. The main director Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, Frank Haun, admitted that the company he led, affected by the economic crisis in Europe. Moreover, the German government has strict policies in exporting the weapons. German-made weapons are strictly prohibited for sale to countries that don't abide by human rights conventions.

Motivated by the policy, a number of parties in Germany to assess their government is reneging on commitments. The reason is, Saudi Arabia clearly indifferent to human rights when they sent 150 tanks and 1,000 soldiers to Bahrain in order to reduce the demonstration on 14 March. Tank fleet was stationed at Pearl Field, in the heart of the capital of Bahrain, Manama.

"The deal of the sale of arms equipment must be stopped," said former German Defense Minister Volker Ruhe.
*****

Tonight I'll ask him about this topic, "Dahling, what is the Germany interest of this situation?" ... There are the U.S, Iran, German, Arab,... hmm...